Experiencing person centredness in Long-term Care: Chapter 21

As people are living longer, the global population of older people is increasing (World Health Organisation, 2019a). These trends are significant policy drivers throughout Ireland, the United Kingdom (UK) and Europe, consistently recognising the ageing population and the societal challenges that this entails, particularly related to provision of long-term care. As people age there are a myriad of potential issues they may face as they grow older including chronic ill-health, cognitive decline, physical ill-health and mental ill-health. Moreover, an ageing society provides significant challenges for the provision of effective and responsive health and social care, irrespective of the environment within which it is to be delivered. This chapter provides an overview and exploration of issues related to the provision of person-centred care in long-term care settings. We will draw on different components of the Person-centred Practice Framework, in particular the care environment and person-centred processes (McCance and McCormack, 2017) to illustrate the complexities of this type of care and the importance of ‘getting it right’ for all persons involved.