Category Archives: Patient-Centeredness

The Promise of Quality and a Pathway to Equity

One of the six components of quality health care identified by the Institute of Medicine is patient-centeredness. While there has been significant attention on the components of safety, timeliness, effectiveness, efficiency, there has been less attention on the components of equity and patient-centeredness.

I have begun to use patient-centeredness as a key concept to drive change and improvement in our health care systems, as well as a pathway to health equity. To me, patient-centeredness means providing the best care to all patients at all times, based on their individual, contextualized needs and preferences. It means customizing and tailoring health care and services for diverse individuals while expecting and achieving the same (highest) quality outcomes for everyone. If we can really transform our current health care systems into more patient-centered ones where patients really are more engaged as partners in their own health care and their own health, we are likely to see quality improvement, reduction of health care disparities, more engaged clinicians and health care providers, and patients and health care consumers with greatly improved experiences of health care

National Committee for Quality Assurance: Patient-Centered Specialty Practice Recognition

Posted on April 23, 2013 by

The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) has released standards to recognize specialty practices as “Patient-Centered Specialty Practices”.  These standards complement NCQA’s standards for recognizing primary care practices as Patient-Centered Medical Homes and largely follow the same basic framework.  The … Continue reading →

Posted in Health Care Reform, Health Care Reform: Medical Homes, Health Care Reform: Quality Improvement, Patient-Centeredness | Leave a comment

Commission to End Health Care Disparities: Appropriate Use of Physician’s Non-English Language Skills in Clinical Care

Posted on January 3, 2013 by

The Commission to End Health Care Disparities has released this publication on the appropriateness of physicians using their language skills in languages other than English while providing clinical care to patients with limited English proficiency (LEP). The Commission comprises more … Continue reading →

Posted in Language Access, Language Access: Best Practices, Patient-Centeredness | Leave a comment

What My Father Taught Me About Health and Health Care, About Life and Death

Posted on December 19, 2012 by

Three months ago, my father Andrew Shih Lun Bau passed away, peacefully, in his own home.  Next week, on Christmas Day, we would have celebrated his 93rd birthday. As someone who now seeks to improve both health and health care … Continue reading →

Posted in Health Care Reform, Health Care Reform: Medical Homes, Health Information Technology, Language Access, Language Access: Best Practices, Patient-Centeredness, The iBau Blog | 24 Comments

Cautious Patient Foundation: How to Get Best Care as a Hospital Patient

Posted on December 12, 2012 by

This guide from the Cautious Patient Foundation describes how patients can be better prepared and more engaged as patients admitted to hospitals.  It also provides useful advice about patient safety, infection control, and pain management. The Cautious Patient Foundation was founded by … Continue reading →

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Cautious Patient Foundation: How to Get Best Care as an Outpatient

Posted on December 12, 2012 by

This guide from the Cautious Patient Foundation describes how patients can be more prepared and engaged in outpatient visits with their physicians and other health care providers. The Cautious Patient Foundation was founded by Dr. Carolyn Oliver to encourage patients to respectfully … Continue reading →

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Cautious Patient Foundation: How to Get Best Care – General Advice

Posted on December 12, 2012 by

This guide from the Cautious Patient Foundation provides an overview of various topics and issues related to how patients can be more engaged in their own health care.  It includes checklists, encourages the use of electronic personal health records, and … Continue reading →

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Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research: Health Literacy Universal Precautions Toolkit

Posted on February 28, 2012 by

This toolkit from the Agency for Healthcare Quality and Research is designed for physicians and other clinicians to take a “universal precautions” approach to health literacy, using improved communication techniques to verify and confirm patient understanding.  Health literacy is the … Continue reading →

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American Medical Association Foundation: Health Literacy and Patient Safety – Help Patients Understand

Posted on February 28, 2012 by

This manual from the American Medical Association Foundation describes the importance of effective communication between physicians and patients, especially when there are communication barriers due to low health literacy.  The manual includes descriptions of best practices for ensuring effective communication … Continue reading →

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National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality: Powerful Partnerships – Families and Providers Working Together to Improve Care

Posted on February 17, 2012 by

This guide from the National Initiative for Children’s Healthcare Quality provides examples of parents of children with special health care needs as “powerful partners” with health care providers, serving as quality improvement advisors to physicians, hospitals, and other providers seeking … Continue reading →

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Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute Seeks Comments on Draft National Priorities for Research

Posted on February 7, 2012 by

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) has released its first draft national priorities for research and research agenda for public comment. PCORI was created by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act but is an independent organization, to be funded … Continue reading →

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