EUROPE/ITALY - Communication doctor-patient at Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital via “emotycons”. Formation Day highlights empathy and rights of little patients

Wednesday, 9 March 2005

Rome (Fides Service) - Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, international point of reference for child health care which treats children from Italy and all over the world, gives special attention to the rights of the young patients and to communication between medical staff and family.
Communication doctor-patient was the issue discussed during a day of study organised by the hospital in collaboration with the Italian Association of Catholic Doctors. The subject was tackled considering the numerous instances proposed by medicine and countless methods which render daily operative decisions in the field of healthcare difficult and confused. Communication with the patient is often reduced simply to informed consensus without actual preparation or participation for better relations, doctor, patient, family.
Pain Faces are sort of “emotycons” to help children tell the doctor where and how it hurts. The use of an “universal pain assessment tool”, rigorous international table to measure pain, already used by some Operative Units of the Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital is a qualifying element of alliance and cooperation for health established between the health workers at the Hospital and the family of the child patient.
“Care for a patient is never complete or satisfactory unless strictly medical and nursing assistance is accompanied by continual and direct human communication between the health workers and the families” the doctors of Bambino Gesù concluded. (AP) (9/3/2005 Agenzia Fides; Righe:25 Parole:280)


Share: