Person-centred care
Person-centred care, also known as patient-centred care, can be defined as "providing care that is respectful of and responsive to individual patient preferences, needs, and values and ensuring that patient values guide all clinical decisions." (Institute of Medicine)
On this page
Principles of patient-centred care
The widely accepted dimensions of patient-centred care are:
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respect
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emotional support
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physical comfort
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information and communication
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continuity and transition
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care coordination
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involvement of family and carers
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access to care.
These dimensions form the backbone of numerous quality improvement programmes and surveys measuring patients’ experience of healthcare.
Sharing Decisions
Patient-centred care is a fundamental aspect of self-management support. Involving people in decisions about their health is key to delivering on this. Find out more about sharing decisions and helping people make choices about their health here.
Consumer engagement
Consumer engagement is pivotal to improving quality, safety and clinical effectiveness in healthcare. It is one of the foundations of person-centred care. To find out more about consumer engagement in Primary Care, read the publication here.
Talking About Health researchers found there were some common issues raised by patients that impacted on the quality of their healthcare experience. In the video below, Claire Budge talks about these issues and provides some suggestions for improvement.
New Zealand initiatives
Find out more about some New Zealand initiatives to develop more person-centred care models here:
Claire Budge provides tips for improving person-centred care from the Talking about Health study.
Learn more
Person- and patient-centred care Health Navigator NZ
References
Epner DE, Baile WF. Patient-centered care: the key to cultural competence Annals of Oncology. 2012 Apr; 23(3):33-42.
See a wide range of resources, articles and references on the Health Navigator NZ website.