Change isn’t easy. PCVS can help.

No question about it, change can feel threatening. Many teams, when confronted with the seemingly monumental thought of switching to a patient-centered practice, will react with hesitance at best…or resistance at worst. “After all,” they may say, “we already do that. Don’t we?”

The Patient Centered Value System (PCVS) is your tool for creating change that is built from the perspective of patients, families and frontline caregivers. By engaging everyone in the process of designing and delivering excellent care, PCVS leads to better outcomes, better experiences and more joy. How can it do this without being overwhelming? Read on to find out.

Ask the right questions.

Successful and sustainable change depends on the input and participation of all stakeholders - from the patient, to the operator that schedules the appointment, to the valet at the hospital, to the doctors, nurses, therapists and everyone in between. The PCVS methodology starts by asking each person, “What matters to you?” then builds new care, processes and solutions to match their responses. Without asking what matters most, we risk creating a subpar experience that is built on assumptions instead of reality.

PCVS starts by asking what matters, and continues by asking for real-time perspective and insight. PCVS Shadowers spend time observing and recording the lived experience in real time. While they observe and record, they ask patients the questions that get to the heart of care:

• Why did you come in today?

• What are you hoping happens today?

• How long have you been here?

• How many doctors and nurses have you seen, and how for how long were they with you?

It is these questions that help us understand what works well and what could be better in the patient’s eyes. Instead of assuming our patient wants or needs certain care and services, we take the time to ask. We take their input back to our teams and get to work creating changes that align with their vision.

Be transparent.

Tell your employees and patients that you are focused on creating patient and family centered care. Make it the framework for every huddle and staff meeting. Start every patient encounter with “what matters.”

But what will patients and families think when we tell them we’re going to start now? Our fear of change prompts us to ask many negative questions that only serve as roadblocks. In healthcare, it is this traditional thinking that keeps us stuck and prevents us from making improvements. Our long-established conventions and traditions have led us to an age where person-centered care is talked about as a priority, but is not practiced in real time.

Find answers with PCVS.

The Patient Centered Value System has tools and approaches that will lead your team through a journey of change.

Break complex change into manageable parts with PCVS.

Changing your organization’s culture to one of participatory and continuous change can feel overwhelming. The solution is to use the PCVS methodology to energize and engage the people who are most affected by change - the patients, families and frontline employees. PCVS breaks complex challenges into manageable parts so that organizations listen, employees and patients feel heard, teams are energized and experiences improve.