Learning by Doing: A Direction for Improving Doctor-Patient Collaboration

Is it possible that healthcare movement such as Patient Engagement and Person- and Family-Centered Care are actually failing? Without a doubt, these movements have generated impressive progress.  I am a parent of a medically complex child who would probably not be alive if not for the success of these movements.  That success has allowed my wife and me — neither of us medical professionals — to put a hand on the wheel of our son’s care and steer toward more favorable outcomes.  Quite reasonably, most people who believe in these movements seem to conclude based on their progress that they are on an inexorable march toward achieving their ideals.  I suggest that the possibility of failure is quite real, in that these movements may be approaching a limit well short of their ideals, and that fundamental changes in our approach will be necessary to realize the vision of engaged patients and healthcare professionals working in true collaboration. The Gap is Larger than We’re Talking About My son Michael was born with a severe congenital heart condition, faced one complication after another, and in the first three years of his life has endured six open-heart surgeries.  Like many engaged patients (“e-patients, or in our case “e-parents”), my wife and I have always seen ourselves as the managers of our son’s care.  We work with his medical team to set reasonable goals and pour energy into pursuing them, learning as we go, involving ourselves in every dec...
Source: Society for Participatory Medicine - Category: Journals (General) Authors: Tags: Newsletter building capability e-patient movement e-patients family-centered care family-centered rounding learning by doing Patient engagement person centered care Source Type: news