The role of the General Practice Liaison Nurse as integrated care coordinator: A Delphi study

Abstract

In New South Wales (NSW), Australia, the position of General Practice Liaison Nurse (GPLN) was established in the early 2000s to support integrated care of patients/clients by encouraging inter professional/inter-organisational collaboration. Other terms used for this role include liaison nurse, integrated care co-ordinator, and primary care liaison nurse. The purpose of this study was to clarify the role of these nurses working in the community in outer Sydney, NSW, using a three round Delphi Technique with 19 GPLNs working in the community specialist streams of child and family, complex and chronic care, and mental health. Findings showed that the GPLN worked across 11 role domains: co-ordinator, educator, communicator, advocate, change agent, manager, collaborator, negotiator, team leader and clinician. Functions were delineated for each domain role and there were a total of 33 functions. This first study in Australia to delineate the role of the GPLN shows that while each of the domains is important, the dominant domain is co-ordination with all the other ten needed to implement this important role. The clarity of the role is important to help the nurses themselves, management, and also other stakeholders to understand their expectations of the GPLN.