Progress in the field of medicine has led to unprecedented improvements in our health and life expectancy. However, quite often those improvements have had dehumanizing effects when it comes to patient care, such as excessive medicalization, lack of human contact, ever increasing numbers of procedures. The consequences can be serious. How can we make the relationship between the sick and their caregivers meaningful again? How can we improve care for people with terminal illnesses, or enhance pain management? Now more than ever, it is time to put the patient at the center of healthcare!
Is it possible to support and care for patients without isolating the patient or excluding their loved ones? With the current health crisis, the recurrent question of patient care and quality of life, as well as that of their families and medical teams, has been at the center of public debate. But beyond the crisis, other factors, like an aging population and an increase in serious chronic diseases, contribute to the discussion on patient-centered care.
After over 20 years of commitment to the development of palliative care, Fondation de France is now taking a more global approach, looking at how to support and care for patients throughout their illness and not only at the end of their lives. This means taking into account all locations where patients are cared for (hospitals, retirement facilities, at-home, etc.), as well as all concerned parties: patients, loved ones and caregivers.
Fondation de France supports both on-the-ground projects and research.
The Patient-Centered Care strategy supports projects that focus on five goals:
- encourage care and support adapted to people with illnesses, as well as their loved ones, with particular attention to intercultural, at-risk, and hardship issues;
- support caregivers confronting difficult situations: overwork, organizational changes, uncooperative patients, notification of serious illness, violence and so on;
- support stakeholder collaborations and healthcare management experiments in hospitals and cities;
- encourage patients and their loved ones to participate and become involved in the treatment strategy;
- help patients develop projects that recognize and benefit from their life experiences.
The Treat, Relieve, Support strategy backs research focusing on four main concepts:
- improve care practices in France using new, validated and easily accessible data;
- increase knowledge on pain during serious illness and at the end of life;
- use medical treatments more effectively and explore non-pharmacological methods;
- encourage multidisciplinary research on ethical and quality-of-life questions that are not funded elsewhere in France.
Fondation de France wishes to contribute to the evolution of the health system through dissemination of this research, especially among policymakers.
Call for projects
The technologization of medicine calls into question the relationship between carers and the cared-for. The balance between the two is crucial to effective healthcare.
Patient-centered care: offering help and support in healthcare facilities
Fondation de France wishes to support caregivers who take a multidisciplinary approach to questioning patient care and current practices, and who wish to improve both. It supports caregivers who wish to nurture their patients’ trust, taking into consideration the uniqueness of each.
Treat, Relieve, Support: research projects
Fondation de France supports research in the field of care for people who are seriously ill or at end of life, to offer new, validated data that will improve practices.
Call for projects
The technologization of medicine calls into question the relationship between carers and the cared-for. The balance between the two is crucial to effective healthcare.
Patient-centered care: offering help and support in healthcare facilities
Fondation de France wishes to support caregivers who take a multidisciplinary approach to questioning patient care and current practices, and who wish to improve both. It supports caregivers who wish to nurture their patients’ trust, taking into consideration the uniqueness of each.
Treat, Relieve, Support: research projects
Fondation de France supports research in the field of care for people who are seriously ill or at end of life, to offer new, validated data that will improve practices.
