Dignity and respect: Health care practitioners listen to and honour patient and family perspectives and choices. Patient and family knowledge, values, beliefs and cultural backgrounds are incorporated into the planning and delivery of care.
Information sharing : Health care practitioners communicate and share complete and unbiased information with patients and families in ways that are affirming and useful. Patients and families receive timely, complete and accurate information in order to effectively participate in care and decision making.
Participation : Patients and families are encouraged and supported in participating in care and decision making at the level they choose.
Collaboration : Patients and families are also included on an institution-wide basis. Health care leaders collaborate with patients and families in policy and programme development, implementation and evaluation; in health care facility design; and in professional education, as well as in the delivery of care.
It also has a neat section dispelling some of the myths of patient centred care such as it’s too costly, it’s not really important, it’s the job of nurses, there’s no evidence, we don’t have the staff.
The document is packed full of examples and tools that could be adapted and adopted.
I was pleased to see, on page 211, one of my favourite Ghandi quotes
“you must be the change you wish to see in the world”
It’s a great manual and source of ideas.
