Let’s all be realistic about the future of medicine 

As Healthcare professionals we have all heard about Realistic Medicine – but do we really know what Realistic Medicine actually means? 

In NHS Grampian we welcome the Chief Medical Officer's paper entitled "Delivering Personalised Care - CMO Annual Report 2021" and see the most important message it offers us is on the subject of Shared Decision Making.  

Embedding a Realistic Medicine approach into the way in which we deliver care is taking us back to the core of why we entered the caring profession, reminding us that we are much more than just systems and processes. We are people responding to people. 

We asked a number of colleagues why embedding a realistic medicine approach was important to them in their day to day work:

"Realistic Medicine is about having a more equal partnership between the patient and the professional"  Paul Bachoo, Medical Director Acute Sector

 

"Realistic medicine is the embodiment of person-centered care which ensures that patients are involved, as much as they want to be, in decisions about their care, which are informed by the most up to date evidence. Realistic medicine supports the ethos of nothing about me without me." Linda Oldroyd, Chief Nurse for Surgery, NHS Grampian

 

"These principles allow me/us as a professional(s) to work in ethical and evidence based ways with proven better outcomes for those we are enabling and supporting. By doing so and seeing the impact it also helps me/us have a greater sense of job satisfaction and accomplishment. For me - we never know what's best for people; we need to get into their lives and help them identify what they can do, what they want and need and what is best for them moving forward. Telling people what to do in my book is an abuse of our privileges; those privileges that come with being a health care professional should be and are better used walking alongside someone enabling and supporting them in ways that mean something and are helpful to them." Dr Deborah Baldie, Lead Nurse for Research and Practice Development, NHS Grampian

The driver diagram below shows the reasons why practicing Realistic Medicine is a priority. 

The driver diagram is available to view as a pdf

In Grampian we have a three year programme of activities that will support the delivery of a whole system Realistic Medicine approach to the care we deliver across Grampian driven by the six key principles of Realistic Medicine. 

Click the link to view the diagram as a pdf

 

Published: 10/11/2021 16:31