By Danielle Thompson, Policies Practitioner
The 13 fundamental standards as set out by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) are the standards below which care must never fall. One of these standards is person centred care.As part of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014: Regulation 9 -person centred care describes the actions providers must take to make sure each person using the service receives appropriate person-centred care and treatment that is based on assessment of their needs and preferences.What Is Person-Centred Care?
Person centred care is about looking beyond a patient or service users’ condition and focusing on them as an individual with their own wants and needs. Providing person centred care is about tailoring your service to suit each unique person and respecting that they have their own values and priorities in life.
The Four Principles of Person-Centred Care
The following principles under pin the concept of person-centred care. In order for the care or treatment your service provides to be considered as person-centred it should be:
- Personalised – care or treatment should be tailored to the service user’s needs, wants, values and beliefs.
- Co-ordinated – All persons involved in care or treatment of the service user should be working together collaboratively in a person-centred way with the individual and with each other.
- Enabling – Person centred care should enable individuals to take ownership of their own care and treatment.
- The person should be treated with dignity, compassion and respect – these core values should be reflected in everything the service does.
Examples of Person-Centred Care
- A service user with dementia has been assessed as lacking capacity to make complex decisions and lives in a residential facility for their own safety. The staff can see from the pictures in their room and after chatting to the service user’s family that the service user has always been interested in following fashion and looking good. Because of this the care staff always make sure they give the service user the opportunity to pick their own clothes each day and support them to look their best. This is in the service users care plan.
- A patient with a chronic condition visits their GP. The GP gives the patient choice and control during the consultation using an approach tailored to the patient’s individual needs. Decision making around treatment is a shared process, and the GP focuses on “what matters to the patient” as opposed to “what’s the matter” with the patient.
What Does Person-Centred Care Mean for Your Business?
When a service adopts a person-centred approach to the care and treatment they provide, it leads to better outcomes for both service users and staff. Better outcomes for service users and staff mean a good reputation, a positive working environment and culture, CQC compliancy and ultimately a successful, profitable business.
Further Reading:
https://www.cqc.org.uk/guidance-providers/regulations-enforcement/regulation-9-person-centred-care
Person-centred care made simple – The Health Foundation
https://www.scie.org.uk/prevention/choice/person-centred-care
To find out more about person-centred care or how we can help your provider to register and remain compliant with the CQC, contact us today.
