Patient- and Family-Centered Care Toolkit

Advocacy ED clinicians Hospital Patients & Families Prehospital Trauma

Patient- and family-centered care is an innovative approach to the planning, delivery, and evaluation of health care that is grounded in mutually beneficial partnerships among health care patients, families, and providers. Patient- and family-centered care applies to patients of all ages, and it may be practiced in any health care setting. The process encompasses the following: providing care with dignity and respect to ensure that patient and family perspectives, choices, knowledge, values, beliefs, and cultural backgrounds are incorporated into the planning and delivery of care; sharing information with patients and families that is timely, complete, unbiased, and accurate to foster effective participation in care and decision-making; and encouraging patient and family involvement at the institutional level through collaboration on policy and program development, health care facility design, professional education, and the overall delivery of care. (Adapted from Advancing the Practice of Patient- and Family-Centered Care, Institute of Family-Centered Care)

As it relates to the provision of pediatric emergency medical services, patient- and family-centered care:

(1) recognizes the value of a family’s knowledge about the patient’s condition

(2) encourages information-sharing to promote participation in medical care decision-making

(3) seeks to help family members retain a sense of control during emergency medical care crises

(4) provides the opportunity for family presence during medical transport or invasive procedures

(5) supports the inclusion of family representatives on committees and advisory councils designed to guide health care organizations and create health care policy