‘Five things about me’ – enhancing person-centred care for older people
Intended for healthcare professionals
Evidence and practice    

‘Five things about me’ – enhancing person-centred care for older people

Emily May Robertson Ward manager, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, England
Joanne M Fitzpatrick Reader in older people’s healthcare, Care for Long Term Conditions, Research Division, Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care, King’s College London, London, England

Why you should read this article:
  • To understand how person-centred care includes the whole person, including their values, beliefs and aspirations

  • To familiarise yourself with the need for person-centred care in the treatment of older people

  • To find out how person-centred profiles of older people can strengthen relationships with staff

Although person-centred care represents the gold standard of nursing practice, there are still instances of care that fail to recognise patients as individuals. Person-centred care depends on the nurse’s knowledge of the whole person, including their values, beliefs and aspirations.

This article describes a quality improvement project that sought to develop patient profiles based on the concept of ‘five things about me’, thereby contributing to person-centred care for older people on a medical ward. The effect on staff, older people and their families was assessed through questionnaires, and group and individual discussions. During the project period, 37 person-centred profiles were completed from 52 eligible patients. Ward staff reported increased confidence when delivering person-centred care and older people and their family members confirmed improvements in care delivery and strengthened relationships with staff.

Nursing Older People. doi: 10.7748/nop.2021.e1372

Peer review

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

Correspondence

emily.robertson@mft.nhs.uk

Conflict of interest

None declared

Robertson EM, Fitzpatrick JM (2021) ‘Five things about me’ – enhancing person-centred care for older people. Nursing Older People. doi: 10.7748/nop.2021.e1372

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Katherine Lenney and her fellow project champions for their commitment and contribution to the project, and Iain Ryrie for his support with the preparation of this article

Published online: 24 November 2021

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