Arun Krishnaraj, MD, MPH, Chair of the American College of Radiology® (ACR®) Commission on Patient- and Family-Centered Care (CPFCC), contributed this post.
Patient- and Family-Centered Care (PFCC) is an approach to the planning, delivery and evaluation of healthcare that is grounded in mutually beneficial partnerships among healthcare providers, patients and families. It redefines the relationships in healthcare by placing an emphasis on collaborating with people of all ages, at all levels of care and in all healthcare settings. PFCC leads to better health outcomes, improved patient and family experience of care, better clinician and staff satisfaction and wiser allocation of resources.
The CPFCC works to ensure high-quality, radiologic care is provided in a manner that incorporates the needs, wants and values of our patients and communities, and leads to improved healthcare satisfaction. Our goal is to make this aspect of providing care as critical as quality, safety, reimbursement and access.
In order to accomplish this, we must make the delivery of patient-centered care instinctive and turnkey as possible. To deliver on this promise, the CPFCC has developed freely available resources that practices can easily incorporate available through the PFCC Hub. The purpose for this extensive resource is to facilitate member commitment to patients and their families. We hope to satisfy members’ first desires in pursuing medicine, to see their patients become the center of their practice as they access new methodologies and implement new strategies for patients’ best outcomes. In addition, there is also a patient-facing aspect to this site that radiologists can share with referring clinicians and their patients to further build the PFCC bridge.
I encourage you to become a PFCC champion and utilize these resources to improve the patient experience at your practice.
We hope to transform our field for the better by empowering patients and providers. Will you join us?