Read here about the issues that are of broadest, most pressing concern to health care administrators, physicians and other providers, and patients and families who are working for patient- and family-centered change today.
Changing the Concept of Families as Visitors
 |
Viewing families as allies for quality and safety and supporting their presence and participation in care and decision-making requires change in hospital and unit policies and education and support for staff.
Sue Sanford-Ring, Director, Quality & Patient Safety, UW Hospital and Clinics met up with Bev Johnson at the National Patient Safety Foundation in Nashville earlier this year and told her that the University of Wisconsin no longer has visiting hours or visitors for those designated as a patient's primary supports.
From Rhetoric to Reality: Achieving Patient-Centered Care
 |
In 1999, the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) established the American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation which seeks to advance medical professionalism and physician leadership in quality assessment and improvement. The 2008 ABIM Foundation's Invitational Summer Forum, "From Rhetoric to Reality: Achieving Patient-Centered Care" was designed to promote dialogue and decision-making among health care leaders to address barriers to, and innovations in, achieving patient-centered care.
HIPAA—Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
 |
The Federal law, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), requires confidentiality of medical records and other individually identifiable health information. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) publication, Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health Care System for the 21st Century, states that health care must be patient-centered and sets forth several "rules to redesign and improve care," including "shared knowledge and the free flow of information." Can health providers comply with HIPAA while following the IOM recommendations? How can hospitals and health care organizations strike a balance between engaging patients and families in planning care and decision-making-which requires the sharing of information to assure safety and quality of care-while safeguarding patient confidentiality? The free download HIPAA-Providing New Opportunities for Collaboration addresses these questions and more.