ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the principles of the patient-centred medical care, while presenting author understanding of an old-new notion, the doctor-centred medical care. The patient-centred approached developed out of a need to fully recognise the patients as people. It derived from an understanding that people need to feel recognised and seen as people in order to cooperate and relate effectively. The patient-centred approach has done exactly that, yet it had omitted an important factor—the doctor as a person, the physician’s subjectivity. The term wellness captures the intricate and multifaceted nature of doctors’ physical, emotional, and mental health; it goes beyond the absence of distress and encompasses qualities of fulfilment and thriving. Doctors are prone to lose sight of the balance between their own enrichment and depletion. Implementing a doctor-centred attitude in medicine means valorising, appreciating, and addressing doctors’ needs and wellness as prominent qualities.
