Nursing should focus on patient- and family-centered care, with nurses being the advocates for the care the patient receives. Patient- and family-centered care involves family participation. This type of care involves patients and their families in treatments and healthcare decisions. I believe it is important to incorporate this type of care at Orange Regional Medical Center (ORMC) because it can ensure that we are meeting the patient's physical, emotional, and spiritual needs throughout their hospital stay. Treating the patient and family as one can have improved outcomes, decreased hospital readmissions, increased patient satisfaction and improved hospital reimbursement. Developing a relationship not only with the patient, but also with the family, can pay off in the long run by providing better communication, improved quality of care, and trust. The patient and family can be strong supporters of performance improvement efforts. Including the family in the patient's treatment means treating the "whole" patient through his or her hospital stay. Involving the family can improve patient care. Including family members in patient care helps them better cope with the patient's illness and helps them plan ongoing care when the patient returns home. Gaining the trust of both the patient and family can help the healthcare team obtain any details that may have been missed upon admission, such as medications the patient is taking, a special diet, or spiritual needs. Additionally, the family can provide pertinent information that the patient may not have disclosed to the nurse. Encouraging the patient and family to express their concerns will help implement a safe action plan. Patient- and family-centered care can have its challenges... middle of paper... be beneficial to the hospital. Nurses are on the front lines of patient care and their contribution should be taken seriously. Testing this plan and revising it before it is fully implemented can only have positive outcomes for the hospital and patient care. I believe this can only benefit the hospital and patient care and create a new way of patient care. Treating the entire family, rather than just the patient, is what the future is about. Implementing this type of care requires creating a partnership between the patient, doctors, nurses and the patient's families. This can only improve performance and treat the patient the way we would like to be treated. My goal is to reduce patient and family anxiety during their hospital experience and keep the entire family informed about the patient's treatment plan.