International roundtable on the self-management support of chronic conditions

Abstract

An international roundtable on self-management support (SMS) for persons living with chronic conditions (CCs) was held in Vancouver, Canada, in June 2009. It brought together 23 leading researchers, policy makers, health care practitioners and consumers from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. It also provided a forum for critically reflecting on SMS approaches and for building consensus on how to move forward in the self-management field. The deliberations resulted in a draft international framework that identifies key definitions, principles and strategic directions and also outlines sample strategies to guide those working to develop SMS capacities at the local, regional or national level. The framework is a mechanism for knowledge exchange that will hopefully act as a catalyst to shift SMS-related policy, practice and research directions to better serve the needs of all CC populations. More than 400 multi-level stakeholders in the Canadian and international community have been invited to review the framework using an e-consultation process. The final framework is scheduled for release in the late fall of 2011.