Introduction
Consumer- centered health care nursing can be explained as an approach to support and assist consumers and their families through modern care models and decision-making. The objective of consumer-centered health care is to build an intense relationship of therapeutic between the healthcare professional and the patient to provide effective health care services . The Institute of Medicines (IOM) has stated that the patient-centered health care is the foundation with the primary goal to ensure consumers treatment under respectful and valuable environment accompanied with their physical and mental comfort. It is also analyzed that several institutions of consumer-centered health care help to enhance the confidence level of consumers through evaluation, treatment, and encouragement that ultimately help the patient to make effective decisions of life.
Principles of Consumer-Centered Health Care Nursing
The International Association of Patient’s Organization (IAPO) has introduced certain principles to ensure that consumers who are engaged with consumer-centered health care are addressed in an effective manner and receive proper health care services that are both suitable and low cost for consumers . Principles of consumer centered health care nursing emphasizes on health care treatment under mutual understanding with consumers and community organizations. These principles have explicitly emphasized the importance of partnership with consumers under the definite procedures, policies and planning related to health care service. It is examined that principles of consumer centered health care nursing are of substantial importance as it encourage, support and value the community members to take active participation in the assessment, delivery and treatment of heath care.
Respect of Patient
The first principle elucidates that respectful attitude during treatment process provides the sense of care, sympathy, and dignity to the consumers. It is obligatory for health care professionals to respect the privacy of consumers and to assure the confidentiality of their personal information. Also, health care professionals are obliged to pay attention toward the concerns of consumers with dignity. Many researchers have proved that those consumers who receive their treatment with respect are likely to have positive clinical outcomes in less time .
Empowerment of Patient
The second principle of the consumer-centered health care emphasizes on the empowerment of a patient. The principle entails that every patient has right to contribute to the decisions making of his health care and to understand his role to move towards betterment. According to the principle, the health professional provides necessary knowledge and skills to consumers to fight the hurdles and to meet the challenges of their daily life. The World Health Organization (WHO) explains patients’ empowerment as the process that facilitates patient to participate actively in the decision-making process and actions that are concerned with his health . The empowerment enables consumers to effectively communicate with health care professionals about the methods or plans.
Teamwork with consumer
The third principle of consumer-centered health care had stressed on the teamwork with consumers and communities. The principle ensures that contribution of consumer in the health care services is widely practiced and every consumer is facilitated to have access to health care professionals without discrimination. Besides, consumers should be encouraged to convey their opinions and to communicate freely in making health care decisions. It is believed that teamwork with consumer during treatment can increase safety and can also help the patient to obtain intensive care . In contrast, the traditional relationship of the doctor with the patient often results in unpleasant effects on the emotions and health of the consumers. However, patient unlike to get accountable for the decision-making but still their questions and contribution in understanding the decisions can have positive impacts on their wellbeing .
Communication
It is essential for the health care professional to aware the consumer from all the information, procedures, policies, and decisions that are taken before the treatment of consumer. In addition, the health professional are required to convey the necessary information to the consumer in a way that they can easily comprehend.
Access and support
The principle reflects the access of consumers in their health care treatment such as access towards secure methods of treatment, ensuring appropriate services are provided during treatment, and health supporting activities . The principle emphasized on the delivery of necessary services to the consumers, regardless of their status or social background. Also, the health care professional is obliged to consider the emotional requirement of consumers during his treatment. According to this principle, doctors are required to consider other issues of patient life that can influence their access towards health care options and management. These issues incorporate non-health factors of consumers such as employment, family problems, and education.
Accountability
The results that are produced after the consumer’s contribution in health care services are delivered back to the communities to ensure that consumers are treated and cared effectively. The delivery of accurate information is a significant principle of consumer-centered health care nursing in which the doctors are responsible to provide accurate and transparent information regarding services and treatment of health care to the consumer. Awareness of the relevant strategies and methods is the basic right of the patient. Therefore, health care professionals are obliged to inform patients of every decision and treatment regarding health care. The doctors and other health care staff are required to deliver information on the literary health principles. In other words, it is essential to consider the age, language, culture, understanding level, ability and the condition of the patient before disclosing any information concerning health care .
Benefits of Consumer-centered and collaborative mental health nursing practice
The collaboration of doctor with consumers in consumer-centered health care has shown significant impacts on the health improvement of consumers. It is examined that consumer-centered health care allows the patient to participate in the decision making of their treatment and subsequently provide the access to the health information . Besides offering quality health care to consumers, the consumer-centered health care treats consumers with the dignity that consequently enhances the sense of motivation in the patient. In addition, methods and techniques that are introduced in the consumer-centered principle are beneficial for the team effectiveness and enhancement of performance.
Nursing Experiences
The experience that I have gained from the understanding of above principles is that the nursing practice is a wide field that requires intense skills, knowledge and commitment to achieve the target of quality health care. It is also understood from the study that the primary objective of nursing practice is health care treatment of the patient whereas saving of cost, enhancement of personal status are the primary targets of nursing practice. The principles of consumer-centered health care have also enhanced my knowledge of multifaceted dynamics of practice surroundings that can assist me in achieving the trust of consumers. Also, I have also recognized that success of the nursing profession becomes real when the health care professionals actively collaborate with consumers and help them to understand the treatment process. Many studies have led great emphasize on the formal educational programs that can enhance the nursing abilities and help to learn new methods and techniques of the nursing profession. The principles and benefits of consumer-centered health care nursing have enabled me to understand the significance work-based learning that is beneficial for the healthcare and improvement of consumers, practitioners and the organization .
Mental Health Nursing Practice
The consumers who are dealing with mental illness encounter confusion, depression and social withdrawal in their daily routine. These consumers experience irritation in the society from the variety of people such as family members, co-workers, friends, and mental health care professionals. It is examined that majority of the consumers dealing with mental illness are found to conceal their disorders and anxiety from the society. In result of these unhelpful experiences, such consumers spent their life with lower self-esteem, anger hurt, and dissatisfaction . However, the role of mental health nursing practice is vital in helping consumers to recover from serious mental illness and disorders. It is analyzed that advocacy and open communication greatly assisted the consumers in coping with such mental disorders. The psychiatric mental health care nursing effectively uses its arts and the wide range of knowledge, research, and various relevant theories to ensure that comprehensive and positive outcomes are achieved .
It is evident that commitment to consumers can improve the health care for consumers and also stimulate fair, transparent, and accountable health services that include not only consumers, but also the communities in the planning and assessment of their services. By sharing the experiences and perspectives, consumers and communities offers a valuable contribution to mental health nursing practice.
Consumer Experience of Depression
The mental health nursing practices helps nurses to interact with diverse group of people that helps them to analyze the increasing depression and changing mental conditions of their clients. Therefore, they can predict that which circumstances are impacting the consumer’s mental condition to what extent. People living the mental illness face such experiences in their lives that make them emotionally and mentally weak that they become less confident to deal with society. Therefore, this social disability needs to be treated and for that mental health nursing practices helps consumers to overcome such disabilities.
Consumer experience of collaboration in their own health care
There are numerous evidences that reflect the consumer’s personal experiences and views referring to collaboration with the health care professional in their own treatment. Studies have proved that consumer get facilitated through respect, teamwork, communication, and support in recovering from their mental illness and emotional disorders. It is also believed by various consumers that their role in health care treatment and relevant decisions aids them to overcome serious impediments of their personal lives. In addition, the consumers support the primary principles of collaboration in heath care nursing because it enhances their relationship and understanding with health care professionals. Most significantly, consumers feel empowered after getting accurate knowledge and information related to their internal health conditions and also experiences great encouragement to make essential changes in their lifestyle. Beside, many patients and consumers are of the opinion that their intense relationship with doctors and nurses has supported them emotionally and has also alleviated their fear and anxiety to a great extent .
Marie, a 30-year-old woman, got deployed from her job in the Middle East. After coming back to her home in US, she started feeling horribly depressed and ultimately decided to attempt suicide. However, her friend referred her to a mental health practitioner whom she decided to consult. The practitioner listened to her problems and asked her various questions about her past. After evaluating her case, he told her that stress could happen due to multiple reasons inclosing biological, bad habits, and past life experiences. He also prescribed her some antidepressant drugs and asked her to attend regular psychotherapy sessions. Marie attended 14 psychotherapy sessions using online consumer health treatment technologies. After conducting sessions, she felt rejuvenated and stated that the main reason behind her improvement of mental condition was the cooperation of a practitioner and the use of consumer health technology that helped her in eliminating social stigma.
It is important to note for mental health using practitioners that treatment of depression, whether in an official setting or online, is a joint effort and needs the cooperation from both patient and practitioner. Secondly, increasing use of consumer health technologies is bringing positive results and further improvements are being made to enhance the quality of treatment . In today’s dynamic era, adoption of such technologies can not only assist the practitioner, but also help consumers in maintaining their anonymity and avoiding social stigma, which is found to be the major reason behind avoiding treatment.
Conclusion
The effective role of consumers and doctors is significant to ensure the safe and quality treatment of health care. There are multiple pieces of evidence proving the fact that active participation of consumers can increase the probability of safe heath care treatment. Also, the patient-centered focus also leads to significant benefits including satisfaction of consumers, families and staff of health care, cost effectiveness, and increased safety. It is examined that mutual understanding between patients and doctors ensures the immediate resolve of complaints.
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