RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Case Management in Primary Care for Frequent Users of Health Care Services: A Mixed Methods Study JF The Annals of Family Medicine JO Ann Fam Med FD American Academy of Family Physicians SP 232 OP 239 DO 10.1370/afm.2233 VO 16 IS 3 A1 Catherine Hudon A1 Maud-Christine Chouinard A1 Marie-France Dubois A1 Pasquale Roberge A1 Christine Loignon A1 Éric Tchouaket A1 Mireille Lambert A1 Émilie Hudon A1 Fatoumata Diadiou A1 Danielle Bouliane YR 2018 UL http://www.annfammed.org/content/16/3/232.abstract AB PURPOSE This study aimed to evaluate the effects of the V1SAGES case management intervention (Vulnerable Patients in Primary Care: Nurse Case Management and Self-management Support) for frequent users of health care services with chronic disease and complex care needs on psychological distress and patient activation.METHODS We used a 2-phase sequential mixed methods design. The first phase was a pragmatic randomized controlled trial with intention-to-treat analysis that measured the effects of the intervention compared with usual care on psychological distress and patient activation before and after 6 months. The second phase had a qualitative descriptive design and entailed thematic analysis of in-depth interviews (25 patients, 6 case management nurses, 9 health managers) and focus groups (8 patients’ spouses, 21 family physicians) to understand stakeholders’ perceived effects of the intervention on patients.RESULTS A total of 247 patients were randomized into the intervention group (n = 126) or the control group (n = 121). Compared with usual care, the intervention reduced psychological distress (odds ratio = 0.43; 95% CI, 0.19–0.95, P = .04), but did not have any significant effect on patient activation (P = .43). Qualitative results suggested that patients and their spouses benefitted from the case management intervention, gaining a sense of security, and stakeholders noted better patient self-management of health.CONCLUSIONS Together, our study’s quantitative and qualitative results suggest that case management reduces psychological distress, making patients and caregivers feel more secure, whereas impact on self-management is unclear. Case management is a promising avenue to improve outcomes among frequent users of health care with complex needs.