Practising personalised care

The NHS Long-Term Plan sets out a commitment to rolling out the comprehensive model for personalised care so that it reaches 2.5 million people by 2023/24 (NHS England and NHS Improvement, 2019). This model aims to support a more individualised approach to health care by reframing the relationship between people/patients and clinicians. It advocates a better balance between ‘what's the matter with you?’ and ‘what matters to you?’. It focuses on wellness, not just illness, and the social determinants of health. Although personalised care is not new, by drawing together different approaches—shared decision-making; personalised care and support planning; supported self-management; choice; social prescribing and community-based approaches; and personal health budgets, the model seeks to fundamentally change the way that care is planned and delivered (NHS England and NHS Improvement, 2019).

Personalised care helps a range of individuals, from those with complex needs to those managing long-term conditions, mental health issues, or struggling with social issues that affect their health and wellbeing. It helps decision-making about managing health, so people can live the life they want to, working with information from the professionals who support them. It represents a fundamental shift in the traditional patient–clinician power balance.