Salute e mutualità nel welfare lombardo

The Italian welfare system is today challenged, between different trends: the reduction of resources (retrenchment policies) and a process of differentiation at sub-national level. The system of Lombardy Region, the Italian model of "quasi-market", presents a model of governance much different than the rest of the national scene. The book presents a reflection on a particular aspect of the social and health care system: the role of self-help groups. In particular, the book focuses on groups that deal with health: Lombardy Region model is in fact a system more functional than other local systems, but his approach remains focused on acute diseases (the hospital system) and not on chronic ones that affect about 30% of a population of 10 million inhabitants. The volume then studies the problems that self-help groups meet in the interaction with the health system, especially when they try to promote integration processes between the health and social issues.