Call for more people to have control of their health and care

From National Voices
National Voices, a coalition of health and social care charities across England, has published a report for more people to have control over their health and care. ‘Person-centred care in 2017’ collates patient and service user reported data and focuses on information, communication, involvement in decisions, care planning and care coordination.
The study looked at key dimensions of ‘person-centred care’ as reported by patients and service users themselves.
The research found that:

• Only 3% of people with one or more long term condition reported having a written plan for their care and support.
• Just 56% of hospital inpatients said they were definitely as involved as they wanted to be in decisions.
• 39% of general practice patients said their GP was ‘very good’ at involving them in decisions.

The report also highlights that although information and communication with patients has improved over time, large numbers of people are still not as involved in their healthcare decisions as they want to be.

• For more information, including access to the full report click here.

• Read Healthwatch England’s response to the findings here.