Person-centred care

Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing, in her book Notes On Nursing (1860), wrote:

“Do not meet or overtake a patient who is moving about in order to speak to him, or to give him any message or letter. You might just as well give him a box in the ear. I have seen a patient fall flat on the ground who was standing when his nurse came into the room…you do not know the effort it is to a patient to remain standing for even a quarter of a minute to listen to you.”

What is person-centred care?

Person-centred care (PCC) goes beyond techniques and procedures. It’s a way of being when providing quality healthcare. It is a “doing with” rather than a “doing-to” approach. It, like Florence Nightingale, considers the state and experience of the person receiving care, to construct an experience that does not add additional burden. Technically speaking, PCC involves communicating, connecting and partnering with others to express interpersonal ethics, professional skills and technical knowledge. But how many of us have watched someone technically do something yet miss the mark completely. It is for this reason that PCC goes beyond techniques and procedures. The collective attributes of person-centred care (see below) involve respecting others, taking an interest in their experiences, offering dignity and providing a safe space for healthcare.

The four attributes of person-centred care

How is it implemented?

Person-centred care is expressed through taking the time to understand your preferences for healthcare, and respecting those preferences. On the ground it looks like:

• Communication

  • explaining your treatment options and respecting your decisions around them

  • outlining the benefits and risks of interventions, to assist you in making an informed decision

  • explaining confidentiality and limits to your privacy

  • helping you understand what is happening in your healthcare and why

  • offering supports to assist in understanding, such as interpreters, conversing in other languages or liaisons

• Choice

  • giving you time to ask questions, and talk to family/friends/carers before making a decision

  • working with you to plan and prioritise treatments

• Consent

  • giving you the right to refuse any treatment you are not comfortable with

  • if you lose capacity for consent, giving you the right to appoint someone to make healthcare decisions for you

• Care

  • respecting you, respecting your privacy and respecting the confidentiality of your healthcare

  • treating you professionally and kindly regardless of demographic, cultural or spiritual beliefs

  • working with you to manage treatment dosage and attendance needs

What does this mean for me?

Person-centred care is associated with improved treatment outcomes and increased satisfaction for both patients and providers. At Headstrong Health, we take person-centred care seriously. If we are getting it right, you should have a sense that:

• we are interested in your healthcare preferences and needs

• you are involved in your healthcare and the decisions around it

• you are offered options in your healthcare; communication is clear and respectful, and,

• your feedback is valued.

Ultimately, you should fee that you are central to your healthcare and we are interested in ‘what matters to you’ not ‘what is the matter with you’. If you have suggestions for improvement, or would like us to know what we should keep doing, please email us at the clinic.