A guide to person-centred care and its principles
Dignity and respect are two of the most important things in personal care in the UK. When providing assistance, these are two important factors that can help a client get through difficult times and ensure that the care you provide helps improve their health and well-being. The person-centred approach in UK’s healthcare entails involving clients in all health-related decisions, regardless of the healthcare setting. It places people and their families at the centre of decision-making, treating them as experts who work with healthcare professionals to achieve the best possible outcome.
In this article, we'll explain what "person-centred care" means in the UK and give an overview of its main principles. Nurses Group Homecare in Yeovil, UK provides one of best person-centred care service.
What is person-centred care in nursing in the UK?
Caring is central to nursing practices in the person-centred care approach. Also, the nurse-patient relationship is fundamental to healthcare as it promotes self-esteem and self-efficacy. Furthermore, it gives the patient a sense of accomplishment and promotes positive self-esteem.
Nobody likes it when decisions are made for them without their input. Person-centred care entails looking after patients beyond their illnesses and tailoring the services to their specific wants and needs.
To provide better support, carers need to listen carefully to their patients in order to understand them and build a good nurse-patient relationship. It will also assist you in prioritising the needs of the patients and demonstrating that you care about them. This approach to nursing focuses on the individual's wants and needs.
Person-centred care is one of the 13 basic standards of care that the Care Quality Commission (the independent body in England that oversees health and social care) says must be met.
Care planning is one of the key processes in which person-centred care must be embedded. Assuring that you are open to new information about a person's preferences, even if it is minor, or feedback on their experience with the care they are receiving.
What are the four principles of person-centred care?
Compassion, empathy, and empowerment are at the heart of person-centred care. It is based on a holistic approach to healthcare, as it takes the whole person into account instead of having a narrow perspective. This approach also includes the person's abilities, resources, wishes, and well-being along with social and cultural factors.
The Health Foundation in the UK sets out four principles of person-centred care, which healthcare workers and carers should keep in mind while providing support to patients.
1. Show dignity, compassion, and respect while treating them
Once a patient seeks help, they often lose their independence, which can hurt their pride. Person-centred care lets carers respect the patient's needs and treat them with compassion and understanding.
To fulfil this principle, keep in mind that patients have their own thoughts, feelings, opinions, beliefs, and values, which do not become invalid once they require support. When their unique characteristics are taken into account, the patient feels much more accepted and cared for, both physically and emotionally.
2. Provide coordinated care, support, and treatment
To provide consistent person-centred care, carers must collaborate with other healthcare professionals and service providers, as some issues may arise when patients move between services or carers. In the meantime, the patient would not get the care and support they need. As a result, carers must document the patient's personal needs. They can document it in their care plan and share it with other healthcare professionals and service providers as needed.
Furthermore, all carers should communicate with one another in order to develop a common understanding of how to provide person-centred care to their patients. However, remember to keep in mind that the privacy of the patient should not be affected.
3. Offer personalised care, support, and treatment
This principle is at the heart of person-centred care, as carers should understand that each person is unique and that the support needs of each individual are different. So a standard approach might make it harder for them to get better and deal with their conditions in the right way. Also, depending on their situation or values, they may hurt the quality of life of the patient.
As a result, carers must understand that tailoring services to each patient allows them to retain some of their autonomy while also meeting their wants and needs.
4. Help people who use your services see and develop their own strengths and skills so they can live independent, happy lives
Person-centred care involves patients in decision-making and helps them take action to support themselves. This allows them to develop their own abilities and an understanding of how to support themselves on their own.
Furthermore, this principle will benefit both parties because patients will feel more in control of their lives and less reliant on professional services. On the other hand, healthcare workers can look after patients who are in need of significant assistance.
Nursing staff, on the other hand, should keep in mind that they must strike a delicate balance. Trying to force patients to do more on their own should not make them feel as if you do not want to help, whereas not involving them will give them the impression that you have no say. To maintain equilibrium, you must always communicate with the patient and their families.
How to measure person-centred care in the UK?
A person-centred care approach can be measured by observing the improvement in or involvement with clients and looking at the service user's satisfaction and experience. There are many things that relate to the measurements and fall under the four principles we talked about earlier.
1. Ensuring patients' physical comfort and safety.
2. Considering the patient's preferences and needs.
3. Considering people's values and putting them at the centre of care.
4. Offering emotional support by involving friends and family.
5. Ensuring that people get the right help at the right time and in the right place.
6. Providing people with all of the information they need to make decisions about their care and support.
7. Checking on the client's bedtime.
8. Making changes to their home settings so that clients can carry out their daily tasks, such as installing railings in the bathroom.
Nurses Group Homecare in Yeovil, UK, gives person-centred care to their clients because they know that each client is different and has different needs. We include our clients and their families while charting a support plan so that their needs are met. Visit our service page to know the various homecare service we provide.