Iliadi Panagiota
Accountability and collaborative care are two meanings often mentioned in the health professionals’ code of practice. Aim: The aim of the present literature review was to explore the meaning of accountability, collaboration and collaborative care. Method and Material: Pubmed and Scholar Google were searched for relevant studies by using the words “accountability”, “collaborative care” and “midwifery” as key words, as well as the South Bank University Library for relevant books. Results: The research revealed 21 studies, mainly British and American. Five studies were referring to the contemporary situation in midwifery practice, seven of them were exploring how accountability obliges health professionals to work collaboratively with other professionals and nine of them were seeking how interprofessional education promotes collaborative care. Conclusions: Health professionals have to work in a collaborative manner not only with other professionals, but also with patients and their families, while interprofessional education plays a significant role in the formation of an effective team.
