Enhancing Patient Care through Person-Centred Healthcare with Dr. Nathan Hutting
Have you ever had an encounter with a physician where you felt like you weren’t fully listened to? You might have been given an overall assessment of your issue, a prescription if you needed one, but the appointment is done in under 10 minutes and you feel…dismissed?
In cases where you have a condition that is immediately treatable, like a cold or a fever, a quicker turnaround is appreciated by both patients and physicians. This is also why online consultations are so popular: quick and accessible!
But what if the condition you’re seeking treatment for is chronic pain or a musculoskeletal disorder? Basically, a condition that requires a comprehensive approach to treatment and care, a person-centred approach perhaps?
In this episode of the “Expert Series”, Associate Professor and Physiotherapist Dr. Nathan Hutting discusses his journey into healthcare advocacy and the importance, as well as some of the challenges, of incorporating person-centred care in healthcare settings.
On Person-Centred Care
Dr. Hutting’s mission to amplify person-centred care for musculoskeletal conditions was catalysed by his own experiences. Injured during his professional mountain biking days, he understands the value of an attentive healthcare provider: one who meets you where you’re at and takes you where you want to go.
Person-centred care involves considering the patient as a whole person and consists of 3 key principles:
-
Biopsychosocial understanding of their pain
-
Person-focused communication and
-
Self-management strategies
The impact of healthcare should extend beyond just treating injuries. For instance, his study on vascular function found that patients who presented with neck and head pain, either during or after treatment likely had a vascular flow limitation. First-point providers often don’t or aren’t trained to recognise these signs and might exacerbate this condition whilst just treating for head and neck pain.
By prioritising open communication between patient and healthcare provider, patients can fully understand the outcomes of their treatments and their healthcare providers can refer them to someone better equipped, should the situation call for it.
Navigating
Challenges
Now, you might be wondering, “Won’t such an approach lead to longer appointment times?”
And you’d be right.
Dr. Hutting agrees that time constraints are one such challenge to implementing person-centred care in healthcare settings. But he insists that networking, education and awareness can help overcome this.
“Networking” here means communication between different administrations within the healthcare systems. He urges healthcare providers to make time to study their patient files prior to their appointments, with the goal of fostering collaborative problem solving.
Dr. Hutting also recommends that healthcare professionals broaden their expertise locally and globally. This includes understanding how cultural beliefs, access to care, and resource availability shape healthcare delivery. For instance, in low- and middle-income countries, patients often play a more passive role in healthcare, and the perception of "best care" is often linked to the latest technological advancements.
Through continuous learning, and cultural sensitivity, healthcare providers can improve their capacity to provide person-centred care and encourage patients to be active participants in their health journeys.
You can hear more about this and Dr. Hutting’s vision for the future of healthcare, in a Patient-Centred Care: A Conversation with Dr. Nathan Hutting, available on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and anywhere else you tune into your podcasts!
Enhancing Patient Care through Person-Centred Healthcare with
Dr. Nathan Hutting
Have you ever had an encounter with a physician where you felt like you weren’t fully listened to? You might have been given an overall assessment of your issue, a prescription if you needed one, but the appointment is done in under 10 minutes and you feel…dismissed?
In cases where you have a condition that is immediately treatable, like a cold or a fever, a quicker turnaround is appreciated by both patients and physicians. This is also why online consultations are so popular: quick and accessible!
But what if the condition you’re seeking treatment for is chronic pain or a musculoskeletal disorder? Basically, a condition that requires a comprehensive approach to treatment and care, a person-centred approach perhaps?
In this episode of the “Expert Series”, Associate Professor and Physiotherapist Dr Nathan Hutting discusses his journey into healthcare advocacy and the importance, as well as some of the challenges, of incorporating person-centred care in healthcare settings.
On Person-Centred Care
Dr Hutting’s mission to amplify person-centred care for musculoskeletal conditions was catalysed by his own experiences. Injured during his professional mountain biking days, he understands the value of an attentive healthcare provider: one who meets you where you’re at and takes you where you want to go.
Person-centred care involves considering the patient as a whole person and consists of 3 key principles:
-
Biopsychosocial understanding of their pain
-
Person-focused communication and
-
Self-management strategies
The impact of healthcare should extend beyond just treating injuries. For instance, his study on vascular function found that patients who presented with neck and head pain, either during or after treatment likely had a vascular flow limitation. First-point providers often don’t or aren’t trained to recognise these signs and might exacerbate this condition whilst just treating for head and neck pain.
By prioritising open communication between patient and healthcare provider, patients can fully understand the outcomes of their treatments and their healthcare providers can refer them to someone better equipped, should the situation call for it.