Patient / Family-centered Care

Patient Family-Centered Care (PFCC) is an approach to planning, delivery and evaluation of health care that is grounded in mutually beneficial partnerships between healthcare providers, patients, and their families. It redefines the relationships in healthcare by placing an emphasis on listening to patients, informing them, and involving them in their own care. The goal is to promote the health and well-being of individuals and their families through respectful and responsive collaboration.

The PFCC model is particularly well-suited to addicted individuals and their families because the patients get to “grab the wheel and steer” during their treatment. What better way to be respectful and responsive to individual patient preferences and needs than to ensure that the patient’s own values are guiding clinical decisions? Make no mistake, though — patients are not alone in this process. They are supported by their healthcare providers and family members along the way.

In addiction recovery, it is important that the healing process not be solely reserved for patients. Families both provide support and need support during the process. It makes sense if you think about it. Families need a “yardstick” by which behavioral change is measured in their recovering loved one, but they also need to understand the part they play in the process and how to behave.