Patient‐centered medicine – transforming the clinical method. By Moira Stewart, Judith Belle Brown, W Wayne Weston, Ian R McWhinney, Carol L McWilliam and Thomas R Freeman. 2nd Edition. Radcliffe Medical Press. ISBN 1 85775 981 8. Paperback, published 2003

Abstract

Patient-centered medicine – transforming the clinical method. By Moira Stewart, Judith Belle Brown, W Wayne Weston, Ian R McWhinney, Carol L McWilliam and Thomas R Freeman. 2nd Edition. Radcliffe Medical Press. ISBN 1 85775 981 8 Paperback, published 2003 Price: £24.95 Sue Cradock*, * Queen Alexandra Hospital, Cosham, Portsmouth PO6 3LY This is the second edition of a popular book in a series of ‘Patient-Centered Care’ books that specifically focuses on the patient centred model of medicine, using the consultation between patients and medical practitioners as its focus. The model focuses on the six components of the patient-centred method: exploring both the disease and the illness experience; understanding the whole person; finding common ground; incorporating prevention and health promotion; enhancing the relationship; and being realistic. It provides its targeted audience/reader with a detailed explanation of the background to the patient-centred method by highlighting the work of Balint and others who contrasted this approach with that on an illness-centred model of care. It then explores the method by using case studies, narratives and evidence to enable the reader to fully understand the approach being described. The authors go on to provide a detailed approach to the development of educational methods to teach practitioners in this method of care. Two detailed appendices provide educational objectives for such training and also an outline of using videotaped consultations to develop practitioner skills in this method of communication in health care. Whilst the book focuses on the work of medical practitioners, it will be of value to any health care practitioner who is interested in developing their consultations. It will also be of value to anyone interested in the concepts of power and agenda setting in the patient/professional relationship. This is acknowledged by Moira Stewart in her final conclusions: ‘The patient-centred method reveals the commonalities among medical disciplines rather than their distinctions. Indeed, it is a clinical method which shares much with other health care professionals as well’.