A 15-month-old boy is admitted with fever, rash, and conjunctivitis. Kawasaki disease is suspected and he is transferred to the inner city academic hospital from the community hospital. The mother of the boy is very concerned about the child and the diagnosis. Family Centered Rounds occur in the morning (Figures 3-1 to 3-4). During rounds, the health care team is introduced and a plan of care is initiated with input from the mother.

Family centered care; Family centered rounds.

An innovative approach to the planning, delivery, and evaluation of health care that is grounded in a mutually beneficial partnership among patients, families, and providers, all of whom recognizes the importance of the family in the patient’s life.^1,2

It is an approach to health care that shapes policies, programs, facility design, and staff day-to-day interactions. It leads to better health outcomes, wiser allocation of resources, and greater patient and family satisfaction.

It should be noted that the term “Patient- and Family-Centered Care” has replaced “Family-Centered Care” to more explicitly capture the importance of engaging the family and the patient in a developmentally supportive manner, as essential members of the health care team.

1. 
   

   Listening to and respecting each child and his or her family, and honoring various types of backgrounds and family experiences. Patient and family knowledge, values, beliefs, and cultural backgrounds are incorporated into the planning and delivery of care.

   
   
2. 
   

   Ensuring flexibility in the practice of the team so that services can be tailored to the needs, beliefs, and cultural values of each child and family, thus facilitating choice for the child and family about approaches to care.

   
   
3. 
   

   Sharing complete, honest, and unbiased information with patients and their families on an ongoing basis, and in ways they find useful and affirming. Patients and families should receive timely, complete, and accurate information in order to effectively participate in care and decision-making. Health information for children and families should be available in the appropriate health literacy. In hospitals, conducting physician rounds in the patients’ rooms with nursing staff and family present will enhance the exchange of information and encourage the involvement of the family in decision-making.

   
   
4. 
   

   Providing and/or ensuring formal and informal support (e.g., peer-to-peer support) for the child and family during each phase of the child’s life. Patients and families are encouraged and supported in participating in care and decision-making at the level they choose.

   
   
5. 
   

   Collaborating with patients and families at all levels of health care: in the delivery of care to the individual child; in professional education, policy making, program development, implementation, and evaluation; and in health care facility design. In the area of medical research, patients and families should have voices at all levels in all facets of research.