Empowerment In Health Care

Patient empowerment:

Patient empowerment in the international point of view is seen as a portion of the human side of healthcare. To gain the empowerment requires time and patients need to be strong in order to gain greater outcomes. With mutual trust gained from the nurse and patient, both nurse and patients will gain the confident. Being a Malaysian I am proud to say that our Malaysia Ministry of Health, had strongly support patient empowerment and each individual are responsible for their own health. It is believed that, regulations and enforcement activities are the tools to facilitate and enhanced individuals and the communities towards self empowerment. The Malaysian communities are encouraged to participate together with the support

2003). Patient empowerment is now been used as a keyword in health care industries as it emphasis on active decision making by the patients. As a nurse, I am convinced that healthcare providers should invest in the concept of patient empowerment in order to master the challenges facing modern health system and patients. According to Elwyn et al. (2013), patient’s empowerment in decision making had gained consensus among health professionals. Definitions on empowerment, with most relating in some way to patients conceived as self determining to have control on their own health and healthcare. Hook (2006) stated that, the definitions of patients’ empowerment include conceptualisation of personal control and

Patient empowerment is also considered to be an approach to health promotion involving patient’s autonomy. Ensuring patient is actively involved in their care, allows the patient’s to achievement of self-efficacy of having a sense of control in their own life.

Studies had shown that, by empowering the patients in decision making, there was a change in behaviour and life style. Patients took control of their own health and wellness, which lead to decrease in dependence on healthcare service. Patient’s previous experiences had influenced their level of empowerment in decision making. Patient’s who had exposed to encouragement from nurses to actively participate in decision making, felt they were given the rights, and their voice was heard.

The concept of patient empowerment in nursing is important as nurses are responsible in planning for discharge preparations for patient (Weiss et al. 2007). Nurses got to ensure that patients have the required knowledge and skills before discharge (Collins, 2014). Wagner et al. (1996) had argued that, for chronic conditions patient’s they learned to empower self management by gain knowledge and skill from nurses whom had done the plans for discharge. Lorig et al. (2009) had agreed that, the concept of empowering patient in self management is crucial. Thus nurses need to have planed discharged for patients as the care does not ends in the hospital, it should continue