For decades the healthcare industry has made a buzz about the importance of patient-centered care and how it helps improve the patients’ experience. Patient-centered care involves putting the needs of the patient and their families, including their support, care, and enablement. This approach encourages patients to take an active role in their care while their needs and preferences are respected and understood.
Patient-centered care also involves having positive therapeutic relationships between the healthcare staff and the patient. The care staff plays a huge role in patient-centered care and should have fulfilling and rewarding roles in their work environment to ensure that they are in the best position to provide the patient care required. Here is an in-depth look at the fundamental principles of patient-centered care.
Swift Access To Reliable Healthcare advice
Access to the right health services promptly plays an essential role in patients’ quality of care. High-quality healthcare services include minimal waiting for referrals and treatment, easy scheduling of appointments, and availability of fast and professional services. Easy and fast access to help care for both unplanned and routine health care is essential.
Respecting Patients’ Needs, Values, And Preferences
It is essential to involve the patient in the overall decision-making on their health and recognize that they are humans with their preferences and values. Ensure that you treat all patients with the respect, dignity, and sensitivity they deserve based on their cultural values and autonomy.
Integration And Coordination Of Care
Patients have often expressed that they feel vulnerable and powerless when faced with an illness. It is vital to ensure that you ensure proper coordination of patient care to ensure that you get rid of these feelings. During focus groups, patients recognized that they could reduce their feelings of vulnerability through:
- Coordination of front-line patient care
- Coordination of clinical care
- Coordination of ancillary and support services
Providing Clear Information Of Support For Self-Care
Patients should receive high-quality and reliable information at every stage of the journey. All the required information should be provided at every stage of the journey. It should also be communicated at the right time during the treatment stages and in a way that is understandable to the patients and their family members or caregivers. It is also essential to ensure that you provide all the required information for the caregivers to ensure that they play their roles adequately.
Provide Physical Comfort
The patient’s physical comfort is vital to the patient’s experience. Some of the areas where patients report to be of vital importance to the patient include:
- Assistance with the environment and other daily needs
- How to manage pain
- Hospital surroundings and environment
Getting Rid Of Fear And Anxiety Through Emotional Support
Anxiety and fear due to an illness can negatively affect a patient’s well-being. Caregivers are advised to pay particular attention to the following:
- Anxiety over the impact of the illness on their families and themselves.
- Anxiety over their physical status, prognosis, and treatment
- Anxiety over the financial impact of the illness
Involving The Family And Friends
It is essential to address the role the family and friends have in the well-being of the patient and the patient experience at large. Some family decisions have to be made regarding patient care. Some of the decisions to be made include:
- Involving close family and friends in decision making
- Providing accommodations for family and friends
- Recognizing the needs of the family through the treatment journey
- Adequately supporting the family members as caregivers
Continuity And Transition Of Treatment
Most patients express concern when taking care of themselves after discharge. Some of the ways to meet the patient’s concerns involve addressing the following areas:
- Offering detailed information regarding medication, dietary needs, and physical limitations.
- Provide adequate information on clinical, social, financial, and physical support continuingly
- Coordinate and plan ongoing treatment and services after discharge.
Access To Care
Patients need to know that they can easily access care whenever they need it. Therefore, it is essential to focus on ambulatory care and a list of hospitals to which patients have access. Other factors you should consider include the availability of specialist and specialty services, easy scheduling of appointments, and availability of transportation, among others.
