title: How to empower patients, and involve the public.
abstract: Patient empowerment and patient and public involvement are a focus for NHS policy, with an emphasis on patient decision making and representation as core features of a patient-focused NHS. Patient empowerment and patient and public involvement imply a rebalancing of power in the nurse-patient relationship. In reality this is complicated by wider issues of power and control in a complex health service influenced by professional agendas, healthcare leadership, government targets and a developing business culture. Despite these ideological and organisational constraints, there are many ways in which nurses can support aspects of individual patient empowerment and patient and public involvement.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education Anglia Ruskin University, Peterborough.
authors.forename: Stewart
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Piper
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations; D009726:Nurses / Q000523:psychology; D010358:Patient Participation / Q000379:methods*; D011209:Power, Psychological; D006113:United Kingdom
keywords: Decision making; NHS policy; individual patient empowerment; nurse-patient relationship; patient and public involvement; user involvement