Final Report > Chapter 23: Respect and Honesty > Introduction

Introduction

1 For a health service to be truly patient-centred, it needs to embrace a commitment to, respect for, and honesty towards, those it serves. Respect for others encompasses the need to see people as thinking, feeling, interacting beings for whom contact with the NHS will be different in each and every case. This means that patients must be seen first as people who live complex lives, rather than as clinical problems with a collection of symptoms. Respect for others also acknowledges difference and responds to individual needs without prejudice or assumption. Honesty implies openness and an exchange of information on all relevant matters. It means being open about risks, uncertainties and alternatives, as well as about the possible benefits of treatment. And it means clinicians being able to say that they do not have all the answers.

2 This chapter is about the relationship between the patient and the healthcare professional. We suggest how the quality of healthcare would be enhanced by a greater degree of respect and honesty in that relationship. We argue that the relationship needs to be based on partnership rather than on outmoded paternalism, and we stress the importance of involving patients, wherever possible, in decisions about their treatment and care. We suggest that much greater attention must be given to patients' needs for information and for support for them and their families. We stress that the communication skills of healthcare professionals are of fundamental importance in enabling patients to participate as partners in their care. We consider the need for a culture of openness and honesty within the hospital as a whole, and we argue for a duty of candour towards patients when things go wrong or concerns are raised.