Principles & Guidelines >> Patient Communication

A trusting relationship with patients and their families is built on open, honest communication. However, today's health care environment makes good communication among patients, families, and caregivers harder and harder to achieve. Hospital stays are shorter, medical care is more technologically complex, resources are constrained, and there is a growing need for patients and families to have more information about, and involvement in, care decisions.

One of the resources the AHA developed to help hospitals do a better job communicating to patients and their families is the plain-language brochure, The Patient Care Partnership.

Replacing the AHA's Patients' Bill of Rights document, the brochure informs patients what they should expect during their hospital stay with regard to their rights and responsibilities. The brochure is available in multiple languages, including: English, Arabic, Chinese (simplified and traditional),  Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese.