Person-centered practice plays a significant role in the organization and management of health systems, as well as in the definition of health policies. This essay aimed to identify the ethical principles and theoretical structures of a person-centered practice, as well as the Portuguese and European national guidelines establish its regulation. A theoretical reflection was conducted based on the critical narrative review of the state of the art on person-centered practice, which aimed to answer the question: what are the structuring elements of the person-centered care practice that make it distinguished in obtaining health gains? Critical reflection contextualizes the paradigm shift to a person-centered practice and identifies the state-of-the-art domains associated with it: philosophical knowledge, theoretical frameworks for clinical practice, teaching and research, approaches to implementation, and regulation. These areas will necessarily have to be considered for a systematic and sustainable development and implementation with effective transformation into health gains.
Keywords:
Ethics; Patient-Centered Care; Persons; Integrated Delivery of Health Care