Person-Centred Care Module: Policy and Frameworks Revision Booklet

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering policy, professional, legal, and ethical frameworks from the Person-Centred Care module for first-year nursing students.

RCN Principles of Nursing

Eight principles (A to H) published by the Royal College of Nursing in 2010 and refreshed in 2023 that describe what patients, families, and colleagues can expect from the whole nursing workforce.

RCN Principle A

Nursing staff behave in a professional and ethical way, give compassionate care recognising each person's diversity and cultural needs, champion inclusion, and report discrimination, bullying, or harassment.

RCN Principle B

Nursing staff have a duty of care, are accountable for their practice, support informed and transparent decision-making, advocate for those who cannot make decisions or consent, and safeguard people.

RCN Principle C

Nursing staff manage risk and safety in all settings and adhere to the duty of candour by being open and honest about care and treatment.

RCN Principle D

Nursing staff work in teams to deliver evidence-based, person-centred care, involving families, carers, and other professionals in shared decision-making while helping people make informed choices.

RCN Principle E

Nursing staff ensure clear communication at all levels, including digital health and digital literacy, and handle individuals' information sensitively and confidentially.

RCN Principle F

Nursing staff keep their knowledge and skills up to date through evidence-based learning and reflection to support people in their care and decisions.

RCN Principle G

Nursing staff provide high-quality, co-ordinated care in close collaboration with other health and social care professionals and advocate to reduce inequalities.

RCN Principle H

Nursing staff demonstrate compassionate leadership, help shape organisational culture, and manage conflict that affects care.

The 6Cs

Six core values for nursing, midwifery, and care staff (Care, Compassion, Competence, Communication, Courage, Commitment) launched in December 2012 as part of the Compassion in Practice strategy.

Care (6Cs)

The core business of nursing and care staff; delivering care consistently that is right for each person at every stage of their life.

Compassion (6Cs)

How care is given through interpersonal relationships based on empathy, respect, and dignity, often described as 'intelligent kindness'.

Competence (6Cs)

Possessing the necessary knowledge, skills, and expertise to assess a person's health and social needs and deliver effective, evidence-based care.

Communication (6Cs)

The cornerstone of caring relationships and teamwork, wherein active listening is just as essential as speaking to achieve 'no decision about me without me'.

Courage (6Cs)

Doing the right thing for patients, speaking up to raise concerns, and embracing new ways of working.

Commitment (6Cs)

A dedicated drive toward serving patients and populations by continually striving to improve care delivery and patient experience.

The NHS Constitution for England

A legal foundation first published in 2009 that outlines what the NHS stands for, consisting of seven principles, six core values, staff responsibilities, and patient rights and pledges.

Working together for patients

An NHS value stating that patients come first in all NHS actions, requiring staff to collaborate across teams and organisations on their behalf.

Respect and dignity (NHS Value)

An NHS value requiring that every person is valued as a unique individual and that their personal aspirations and commitments are respected.

Commitment to quality of care (NHS Value)

An NHS value focused on getting the basics right every time across three core domains: safety, clinical effectiveness, and patient experience.

Compassion (NHS Value)

An NHS value centred on responding with humanity, warmth, and kindness to each person's pain, distress, anxiety, or need.

Improving lives

An NHS value focused on striving to improve general health and wellbeing as well as people's overall experience of NHS services.

Everyone counts

An NHS value ensuring that healthcare resources are used fairly and that no individual is excluded, discriminated against, or left behind.

NHS Constitution Principle 4

The guiding principle that the patient will be at the heart of everything the NHS does, including supporting self-management and reflecting patient preferences.

CQC Fundamental Standards

Legally enforceable regulatory baselines set out in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 below which care must never fall.

CQC Regulation 9: Person-centred care

A legal standard mandating that treatment and care must be tailored to the individual, meet their preferences and needs, and involve them in decisions.

CQC Regulation 9A: Visiting and accompanying

A standard introduced in 2024 ensuring that service users can receive visitors and have an accompanying person with them during appointments.

CQC Regulation 10: Dignity and respect

A standard ensuring people are treated with dignity and respect at all times, including safeguarding privacy and supporting their independence.

CQC Regulation 11: Need for consent

A standard requiring that care and treatment only be provided with valid patient consent or in compliance with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 if capacity is lacking.

CQC Regulation 12: Safe care and treatment

A regulatory requirement that care must be delivered safely, including assessing and mitigating all clinical and environmental risks.

CQC Regulation 13: Safeguarding

A standard requiring service providers to protect individuals from abuse, neglect, degradation, and improper treatment.

CQC Regulation 14: Nutrition and hydration

A standard mandating that service users receive adequate food and fluids to maintain health, accompanied by practical assistance when required.

CQC Regulation 16: Complaints

A standard requiring an accessible system for receiving, investigating, and acting upon complaints made about care and service delivery.

CQC Regulation 18: Staffing

A requirement that providers maintain sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, skilled, competent, and experienced staff to meet service users' needs.

CQC Regulation 20: Duty of candour

A statutory requirement that healthcare organisations be open, transparent, and honest with patients or their families whenever an unintended incident or harm occurs.

Mental health personalised care framework (2026)

An NHS England policy framework replacing the Care Programme Approach (CPA) that establishes four core principles and nine key actions to personalise care for people with severe mental health conditions.

Co-produced care and support plan

A holistic plan created collaboratively with a mental health service user that covers housing, finances, employment, physical health, relationships, culture, mental health, and safety.

Named worker

A designated, suitably skilled practitioner who acts as the primary contact for an individual under the Mental Health Personalised Care Framework while the wider MDT retains overall responsibility.

The NMC Code

The professional framework set by the Nursing and Midwifery Council containing 25 standards across four themes that UK nurses, midwives, and nursing associates must uphold to maintain professional registration.

Prioritise people

Theme 1 of the NMC Code (Standards 1 to 5), covering treating individuals with dignity, listening to preferences, addressing holistic needs, acting in best interests, and respecting confidentiality.

Practise effectively

Theme 2 of the NMC Code (Standards 6 to 12), focusing on delivering evidence-based practice, clear communication, interprofessional collaboration, and maintaining accurate records.

Preserve safety

Theme 3 of the NMC Code (Standards 13 to 19), directing practitioners to work within their competence, maintain candour, act swiftly on risks, and escalate safeguarding concerns.

Promote professionalism and trust

Theme 4 of the NMC Code (Standards 20 to 25), mandating honesty, integrity, non-discriminatory practice, and visible clinical leadership to protect public trust.

Revalidation

The three-yearly process introduced in April 2016 through which registered nurses and midwives demonstrate to the NMC that they continue to meet the standards of the Code.

Mental Capacity Act 2005

The statutory framework in England and Wales governing decision-making for individuals aged 16 and over who may lack mental capacity to make specific decisions.

MCA Principle 1: Presumption of capacity

The statutory requirement that every person must be assumed to have decision-making capacity unless established otherwise through proper assessment.

MCA Principle 2: Supported decision-making

The requirement that a person must not be treated as unable to make a decision until all practicable, supportive steps to help them decide have failed.

MCA Principle 3: Unwise decisions

The statutory protection stating that making an eccentric, irrational, or unwise decision does not, in itself, indicate that a person lacks mental capacity.

MCA Principle 4: Best interests

The principle that any act done or decision made on behalf of an individual who lacks mental capacity must strictly be in their best interests.

MCA Principle 5: Less restrictive option

The mandate that before intervening on behalf of someone lacking capacity, practitioners must evaluate whether the aim can be met in a manner less restrictive of their rights and freedoms.

Four-stage functional test of capacity

The statutory assessment determining whether an individual can understand, retain, use or weigh information relevant to a decision, and communicate their decision by any means.

Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS)

Legal protections incorporated into the MCA 2005 following the 2004 Bournewood case to protect vulnerable people who lack capacity from arbitrary confinement in care homes or hospitals.

Independent Mental Capacity Advocate (IMCA)

A statutory advocate appointed under the MCA 2005 to represent and advocate for an individual who lacks capacity and has no family or friends to support them.

Welfare is paramount

The foundational principle from Section 1 of the Children Act 1989 dictating that the child's welfare must be the primary consideration in decisions regarding their upbringing.

The welfare checklist

A statutory list of factors under Section 1(3) of the Children Act 1989 including the child's wishes, emotional and physical needs, age, background, harm risks, and parental capability.

Parental responsibility

The legal rights, duties, powers, and responsibilities a parent possesses regarding a child, established automatically for mothers and for fathers married to the mother or registered on the birth certificate.

Children in need (Section 17)

A statutory category under the Children Act 1989 placing a duty on local authorities to provide services to safeguard and promote the health or development of vulnerable or disabled children.

Significant harm enquiries (Section 47)

A legal duty under the Children Act 1989 requiring local authorities to make formal enquiries when there is reasonable cause to suspect a child is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm.

Duty to safeguard (Section 11, Children Act 2004)

A statutory duty requiring NHS organisations, police, and other statutory agencies to ensure that their functions are carried out with regard to the need to safeguard and promote children's welfare.

Working Together (Section 10, Children Act 2004)

A statutory obligation requiring multiple partner agencies to co-operate and share information effectively to improve children's wellbeing and safety.

Principles of biomedical ethics

A framework developed by Tom Beauchamp and James Childress (1979) containing four ethical principles (autonomy, non-maleficence, beneficence, justice) to guide clinical ethical decision-making.

Respect for autonomy

The ethical duty to respect and support a competent individual's moral right to make informed choices and decisions about their own body, medical care, and life.

Non-maleficence

The fundamental ethical obligation to avoid inflicting harm or unnecessary risk of harm upon an individual without justification.

Beneficence

The moral duty to act in ways that benefit the patient, promote their overall wellbeing, and prevent or remove potential sources of harm.

Justice (Biomedical Ethics)

The ethical obligation to treat individuals fairly, avoid discrimination, respect human rights, and ensure equitable distribution of healthcare resources.

Paternalism

The clinical practice or ethical dilemma of overriding or interfering with a person's autonomous choices or actions for their own perceived good or protection.

Utilitarianism

A consequentialist ethical theory associated with Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill which argues that the morally right action produces the greatest happiness or good for the greatest number.

Deontology

A duty-based ethical philosophy associated with Immanuel Kant asserting that actions are morally required based on universal moral rules, requiring people to be treated as ends in themselves rather than means.

Virtue ethics

An ethical approach rooted in the philosophy of Aristotle focusing on the moral character and inherent virtues of the practitioner rather than rigid rules or consequences.

Casuistry

A case-based method of ethical reasoning associated with Albert Jonsen and Stephen Toulmin that resolves moral dilemmas by drawing direct comparisons to previously settled paradigm cases and case law.