NURSING CARE

Person Centered Psychiatric Nursing Care

Person Centered Psychiatric Nursing Care

The provision of person-centred care is commonly regarded as a crucial component of delivering high quality health care, and features prominently in the literature and philosophy statements of health care organisations ([Coyle and Williams, 2001], [Mead and Bower, 2000] and [Sheard, 2004]). An emergent focus on a person-centred approach has occurred as a result of the increasing emphasis on improving processes and outcomes of care - and a growing awareness of consumer rights and expectations ([Dawood, 2005], [McCormack, 2003] and [Manley, 2004]). A person-centred approach to health care delivery is purported to be effective and efficient, and result in improved patient outcomes (Holman and Lorig, 2000).

Despite the emphasis on person-centred care and claims that it leads to improvements in patient experience and outcomes, there are multiple interpretations of person-centred care across nursing and other health care disciplines ([Cahill, 1996] and [Lutz and Bowers, 2000]). However, within the varying definitions and conceptual views, key attributes of person-centred care can be identified and are intrinsically linked: the existence of a therapeutic relationship between nurses and patients, the provision of individualised care and evidence of patient participation ([Cahill, 1996], McCormack and Titchen, 2001 B. McCormack and A. Titchen, Patient- centred practice: an emerging focus for nursing expertise. In: J. Higgs and A. Titchen, Editors, Practice Knowledge and Expertise in the Health Professions, Butterworth Heinemann, Oxford (2001), pp. 96-101.[McCormack and Titchen, 2001] and [Redman and Lynn, 2004]).

The person-centred nursing framework developed by McCormack and McCance (2006) emphasises the importance of these key factors being underpinned by the nurses' understanding of the patients' beliefs and values. In addition, the person-centred nursing framework articulates the attributes and skills of nurses and the characteristics of the care environment that are required in order to achieve person-centred processes. The complexity of providing person-centred care is highlighted, thus supporting the view that establishing and maintaining a person-centred approach across an organisation or in a clinical unit is complex and challenging. Some authors assert that very few services can truly claim to deliver person-centred care ([Baker et al., 2003] and [Lutz and Bowers, 2000]).

Medication activities provide an opportunity to examine nursing practice for evidence of a person-centred approach, due to the high level of interactions occurring between nurses and patients during these activities. Medication administration and education are aspects of patient care that are performed by nurses and most patients have ...