Temporary services for patients in need of chronic care

BACKGROUND: A project is a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a product or service. Projects are frequently used for the testing and development of new approaches in social work. Projects can receive grants from central, often national or international institutions, and allow for more experimentation than work placed within existing institutions. DISCUSSION: For socially marginalized groups who need continuing support and care, receiving help in a project means that the clients will have to be transferred to other services when the project ends. There is also a risk that clients will experience a decline in services, as staff members have to seek new employment towards the end of the project, or begin to focus more on the evaluation than the services. This raises some ethical issues concerning the use of human subjects in projects. CONCLUSION: Project managers should consider ethical issues relating to continuity of services when serving vulnerable patients with a need for continuing care.