What is person-centered health care?

What is person-centred health care? There are many definitions of person-centred (patient-or client-centred) health care in the literature. The Victorian Department of Human Services (2003) defines person-centred care as ‘treatment and care provided by health services [that] places the person at the centre of their own care and considers the needs of the older person’s carers’. The main features of person-centred health care derived from the literature can be encompassed within the concept of partnership. The overriding message is that person-centred care is about a collaborative and respectful partnership between the service provider and user. The service provider respects the contribution the service user can make to their own health, such as their values, goals, past experience, and knowledge of their own health needs, and the service user respects the contribution the service provider can make, including their professional expertise and knowledge, information about the options available to the ...

Access and utilisation of primary health care services comparing urban and rural areas of Riyadh Providence, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has seen an increase in chronic  diseases. International evidence suggest that early intervention is the best approach to reduce the burden of chronic disease. However, the limited research available suggests that health care access remains unequal, with rural populations having the poorest access to and utilisation of primary health care centres and, consequently, the poorest health outcomes. This study aimed to examine the factors influencing the access to and utilisation of primary health care centres in urban and rural areas of Riyadh province of the KSA. 

Imperial child health general practice hubs

For most children, the GP is their main point of contact with the health servivce. While children make up nearlyy one-fifth of the population in England, they are estimated to account for two-fifths of a typical GP´s workload. Despite this, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health estimate that in many parts of the country, between 40 and 50 per cent of GPs have a had little or no formal paediatric training. Evidence suggest that many of these case could be managed outside an acute setting. 

Primary healthcare policy implementation in the Eastern Mediterranean region: Experiences of six countries.

Primary healthcare (PHC) is essential for equitable access and cost-effective healthcare. This makes PHC a key factor in the global strategy for universal health coverage (UHC). Implementing PHC requires an understanding of the health system under prevailing circumstances, but for most countries, no data are available.
This paper describes and analyses the health systems of Bahrain, Egypt, Lebanon, Qatar, Sudan and the United Arab Emirates, in relation to PHC.

An integrative review of potential enablers and barriers to accessing mental health services in Ghana

The importance of accessible mental health treatment is a global concern, particularly when one in five people will experience a mental health problem in their lifespan. This is no less important in Ghana; however, no studies have yet attempted to appraise and synthesise the potential enablers and barriers to accessing services in Ghana. The aim of this integrative review is therefore to identify and synthesise existing evidence on the barriers and enablers to accessing mental health services in Ghana.

How Equity-Oriented Health Care Affects Health: Key Mechanisms and Implications for Primary Health Care Practice and Policy

Significant attention has been directed toward addressing health inequities at the population health and systems levels, yet little progress has been made in identifying approaches to reduce health inequities through clinical care, particularly in a primary health care context. Although the provision of equity?oriented health care (EOHC) is widely assumed to lead to improvements in patients’ health outcomes, little empirical evidence supports this claim. To remedy this, this study tested whether more EOHC predicts more positive patient health outcomes and identified selected mediators of this relationship

A novel approach to integrated care using mobile technology within home services. The ADMR pilot study

The care model for supporting elderly people living independently at home relies on the informal and formal assistance of caregivers. Information and communication technology (ICT) offers new approaches for informal care services for this group.

Care coordination in the health-care service delivery: an elderly care perspective

The purpose of this study is to assess the relationship between patient-centricity, care coordination and delivery of quality care for older people with multiple chronic conditions. Care coordination is defined as a process where physicians, nurses and allied professionals work together to clarify responsibilities, care objectives, treatment plans and discharge plans for delivery of unified care. Patient-centricity is defined as an approach of delivering quality care to patients that focuses on creating a positive experience for them.

Care providers, access to care, and the Long-term Care Nursing Insurance in China: An agent-based simulation

China piloted a publicly funded Long-term Care Nursing Insurance (LTCNI) with an aim to improve access to long-term care (LTC) for older people in China in 2012. Existing studies showed that the scheme has been successful in meeting some goals, but little is known on how the availability, price and quality of the local care providers affect access to care. This article founded considerable discrepancies in terms of access to services among the LTCNI beneficiaries. The poor are more likely to choose nursing home care with low costs albeit these services may be of poor quality. The demand for home-based services is high, but these services are not distributed according to population needs and are not available in some districts with high concentration of older people. 

Integrating health care in Australia: a qualitative evaluation

With aging populations, a growing prevalence of chronic illnesses, higher expectations for quality care and rising costs within limited health budgets, integration of healthcare is seen as a solution to these challenges. Integrated healthcare aims to overcome barriers between primary and secondary care and other disconnected patient services to improve access, continuity and quality of care. Many people in Australia are admitted to hospital for chronic illnesses that could be prevented or managed in the community. Western Sydney has high rates of diabetes, heart and respiratory diseases and the NSW State Ministry of Health has implemented key strategies through the Western Sydney Integrated Care Program (WSICP) to enhance primary care and the outcomes and experiences of patients with these illnesses.

General practitioners’ views on use of patient reported outcome measures in primary care: a cross-sectional survey and qualitative study

Patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) are increasingly used to assess impact of disease and treatment on quality of life and symptoms; however, their use in primary care is fragmented.

The aim of this study was to investigate how PROMs are currently being used in primary care, the barriers and facilitators of this use and if appropriate how it might be optimised.