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Integral Neuroscience Initiative

WHOLE-PERSON CARE

Understanding health means
understanding a person’s life.

Symptoms matter. So do relationships, daily circumstances, emotional life, and the things that give a person meaning.

Questions for your care team

A SHARED STARTING POINT

Care begins with listening.

Whole-person care considers how someone’s health and everyday life affect each other. It gives the person a say in what happens next and helps the professionals involved coordinate their care.

It can include the body and its symptoms, feelings and patterns of stress, the support available at home, the demands of daily life, and the person’s values and sense of purpose. It respects the person’s choices, culture, and circumstances.

The aim is coordinated care, with the person and the people they want involved taking part in decisions. Different professionals contribute within their roles.

WHOLE-PERSON CARE

Understanding health means understanding a person’s life.

Whole-person care considers how someone’s health and everyday life affect each other. The person, and the people they want involved, take part in decisions. Different professionals contribute within their roles.

Five parts of one life. Five questions to discuss with your care team.

One person gently holding another person’s hand beside a bed

  • The body

    What is happening in your body, and what concerns you most?

  • Emotional life

    How has this been affecting the way you feel?

  • Relationships

    Who do you turn to, and who would you like included?

  • Daily life

    What is hardest to manage in an ordinary day?

  • Meaning

    What matters most to you as we think about what comes next?

These prompts are for general education. Individual assessment and treatment belong with qualified care professionals.

Two women talking outdoors, one wearing blue scrubs and holding a clipboard

FOR PATIENTS AND FAMILIES

Your priorities belong in the conversation.

You can begin by sharing what matters most, what feels difficult to manage, and who you would like involved. You do not need to have the whole story organized before asking for support.

THE INITIATIVE’S ROLE

Research, education, and advocacy.

INI’s public purpose is to advance this conversation through research, education, and advocacy. Our future institute vision grows from the same commitment.

For further writing and educational resources, visit the Center for Integrative Neuroscience, our separately operated sister organization.

Explore the Center’s resources