Humanizing the patient

If a family member of yours is admitted to the hospital, it is crucial that some relatives stay in regular contact with the physician and medical staff. I have seen time and time again that the quality of patient care improves when the patient has someone present to advocate for their best interests. It is important to ask questions, make sure your family member is receiving the correct amount of medication, that he/she is getting fed on time, etc. I am not saying patients without good social support are neglected, but quality of care certainly rises when the patient has a strong advocate.

No matter where I have worked, I hear patients referred to by medical staff only as "the patient." Often their room number becomes a substitute for his/her name. For example, Mr. Smith becomes known as "256" (his room number). This sometimes dehumanizes the patient. Instead of being thought of as a person, they may be seen as a number.

I saw a family do a very interesting thing the other day to counteract this. They created a huge display on a giant piece of oaktag, which had the patient's name written in large print in the middle with a message below reading "Please take a minute to learn a bit about John Smith." The display had pictures from his childhood to graduation to marriage and to recent times. Pictures of his family included brief descriptive captions and there was another narrative section summarizing the person's life.

What a terrific idea! You can't help but read the display and once you do, you learn that "256" isn't just another body in a hospital bed. I encourage more families to make such collages. Besides filling people in on your loved one's life, it lets staff know that family is present and actively involved in the person's care.