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WOUND CARE

and Swaine (2011) present an apt description of inter-professional collaboration as “at the

extremity of a continuum of collaborative practice implicating multiple stakeholders

(professionals, clients, relatives, community partners, etc.) and is characterized by

interdependence between these individuals to develop a cohesive care plan that meets clients’

needs” (p. 300). In essence, “an infrastructure which provides the foundation for safe and

effective patient care is required” (A. Hughes, personal communication, August 29, 2013).

Returning to the underpinning assumptions of this study, namely, science, safety, value, co-

operation, and anticipation, it is crucial that an inter-professional collaborative approach drives

the focus towards the goal of ‘best practice’. Guideline-driven care may be efficient in

simplifying the transferal of tasks between different types of staff while maintaining quality

(Sibbald, Shen, & McBride, 2004). This initiative towards quality improvement also directs us

to another important perspective, that of the patient.

Person-centred processes. Patients are experts in describing their own experience

regarding the spectrum of care received. Armstrong and Armstrong (2008) suggest that we must

also ask, “How will citizens, who contribute to all health-care services, directly and indirectly,

have their voices heard in the design of healthcare services?” (p. 137). Perhaps, patients are

subject to decisions made by the team and might lose their own voice in health care decision-

making. Advanced infrastructural changes such as implementing electronic health records in

itself is not patient-centred care unless it reinforces the client-clinician relationship, supports

communication, “helps patients know more about their health status and facilitates their

involvement in their own care” (Epstein & Street, 2011, p. 101). The electronic documentation

program called “ARIA” in my own practice is an exemplar way of communicating across the

multidisciplinary team. While patient preference such as Advance Care Planning is initiated, it is