Patient-Centered Care

All health care decisions and quality measures are driven by an individual's specific health needs and desired health outcomes in patient-centered care. Patients and their health-care professionals are partners, and providers serve patients not only clinically, but also emotionally, mentally, spiritually, socially, and financially. In order to build and administer a unique and comprehensive treatment plan, patient- and family-centered care fosters active cooperation and shared decision-making among patients, families, and providers. The concept of patient-centered care is applied to the treatments and therapies provided by professionals. Not only are treatment plans personalized to the individual, but drugs are also frequently customized. In many disease conditions — particularly cancer — a patient's genetics, metabolism, biomarkers, immune system, and other "signatures" can now be used to develop personalized drugs and therapies, and also companion diagnostics that assist clinicians better anticipate the best drug for each patient.

• Family centered drugs
• Biomarkers