Caring about carepaths

Caring about carepaths.

This short paper describes an experiment in the use of clinical pathways for orthopaedic patients at Cairns Base Hospital. We rapidly found they improved the management of cost and quality, and that there were many beneficial side-effects. Our approach was subsequently adopted in other departments. Unfortunately, external support for further developments has not been forthcoming and we argue th...

Caring about carepaths: on locus of control, holons and weltanschauung.

Stakeholders in acute care experience problems at various levels and in many places. Numerous critics have pointed to flaws in the system such as fragmentation, structural deficiencies, lack of clinical governance, insufficient resources, serendipitous rather than planned outcomes, poor systems and neglect of health promotion, prevention and education, to mention only some. It is not surprising...

Why aren't clinicians caring about carepaths? A commentary.

One of the most thought-provoking aspects of the paper by Pearson and Macintosh (2001) is the simple observation that the management practice described is in any way noteworthy. After all, it amounts to little more than a description of care, some measurement of outcome, and the incorporation of basic software. If this is exceptional, what is going on elsewhere? A public brought up on American ...

Caring More About You

Caring about humanitarian crises

Wars and natural disasters causing thousands of deaths and forcing millions to fl ee occur frequently and are widely reported to a global audience. However, responses in terms of charity donations, demonstrations, political response and military intervention are dramatically different between one case and the next. When and why do we care about victims of humanitarian crises? Michael Gross inve...