This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.

AAP: Better health outcomes require patient-, family-centered care

Committee on Hospital Care. Pediatrics. 2012;129:394-404.

An AAP advisory committee issued a policy statement that defines and emphasizes patient- and family-centered care as a cost-effective measure for better health outcomes and other benefits, and offers recommendations for implementation.

In the statement, the AAP’s Committee on Hospital Care and the Institute for Patient- and Family-Centered Care said this type of care “recognizes the importance of family in the patient’s life by acknowledging emotional, social and developmental support.”

The committee defined six core principles of patient- and family-centered care:

• Listening to and respecting the child and his or her family.
• Having flexible procedures policies and provider practices so care can be customized to families’ needs.
• Sharing information with patients and families.
• Providing support throughout the child’s life.
• Collaborating at all levels of health care.
• Building on individual strengths of children and families.

In the statement, the committee said the benefits of patient- and family-centered care for families and patients include, but are not limited to, fewer non-urgent ED visits in children; decreased anxiety for children when family is present at medical visits; better parent preparation; faster recovery and greater comfort for children after a medical procedure; and improvement in handling stress resulting from medical procedures.

In addition, the policy statement said patient- and family-centered care lends to greater medical staff satisfaction.

Pediatricians also benefit from patient- and family-centered care. The authors of the policy statement wrote that besides other benefits, this type of care encourages “a stronger alliance with the family in promoting each child’s health and development, improved clinical decision-making based on better information and collaborative process, improved follow-through when the plan of care is developed collaboratively with families.”

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.

Follow the PediatricSuperSite.com on Twitter.