Abstract
In this narrative article, the author, a long-term cancer survivor, reflects on his personal interactions with the healthcare system over a period of 14 years in order to highlight the importance of delivering patient-centered care. He makes a case for why quality of care assessments are incomplete if they focus on clinical indicators of quality alone and exclude systematic assessment of the patient-centered aspects of care from the patient’s perspective. The important role played by patient-centered care in reducing patient suffering and enhancing well-being is underscored in this commentary.
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Acknowledgments
This manuscript is based in part on a presentation made by the author at the 4th Biennial Cancer Survivorship Conference—Cancer Survivorship Research: Mapping the New Challenges, Atlanta, GA, 18–20 June 2008. The opinions expressed by Dr. Arora in this article are his own and do not represent any official position of the National Cancer Institute.
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Arora, N.K. Importance of patient-centered care in enhancing patient well-being: a cancer survivor’s perspective. Qual Life Res 18, 1–4 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-008-9415-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-008-9415-5