Defining 'people-centredness': making the implicit explicit

This paper examines the emerging concept of 'people-centredness' in relation to health care. It raises issues resulting from debates about consumerism within health care to set the parameters for the ensuing analysis. The particular context for the analysis is Welsh health care policy which proclaimed 'health gain', 'resource effectiveness' and 'people-centredness' as the three core objectives of the health service re-focus. Illustrations about the range of meanings of 'people-centredness' are drawn from one of the author's (BW) studies in the field of community mental health. The analysis posits different relationships between 'health gain' and 'people-centredness' and considers the implications for a re-definition and re-working of ideas about people-centredness in health services.