Coulter A, Ellins J. Patient-focused interventions: A review of the evidence. Picker Institute Europe. 2006 Aug. Retrieved from http://www.health.org.uk/publications/patient-focused-interventions/
Patient-focused interventions are those that recognise the role of patients as active participants in the process of securing appropriate, effective, safe and responsive healthcare. There is a growing belief among policy-makers that patients/citizens can contribute to quality improvement at both an individual and a collective level.
As individuals or family members patients can play a distinct role in their own care by diagnosing and treating minor, self-limiting conditions; by preventing occurrence or recurrence of disease or harm; by selecting the most appropriate form of treatment in partnership with health professionals for more serious illness; and by actively managing long term conditions. Recognising these roles and seeking to strengthen them is seen as fundamental to securing a more patient-centred approach to healthcare delivery.
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