Colonists and Patients July 4th is for celebrating America’s independence from England. We picnic, enjoy fireworks, and watch parades…its great fun. The Revolutionary war was anything but fun. It was gut-wrenching marches in stifling heat or blowing snow often with only rags tied on the soldiers’ feet because the boots were worn through. It was unthinkable that a people as varied in interests, wealth, and skills could come together for their desire to be free and beat the most powerful army in the world, but they did. Then the real work began, creating a government that would work and live … [Read more...]
Listen! Say Our Patients
Patient engagement is the new mantra. Several posts on 21st Century Patients blog have addressed this phrase and the confusion surrounding the term. Likewise, there are can be no defined outcomes for “engagement”. Although a meaningless phrase it is here to stay – subject to various interpretations and possibly used as a weapon for someone’s benefit. I suggest we step back a moment and really look at our clinical care areas for the presence of “engagement”. What do you see? Where are the eyes and ears? Perhaps you can identify with the scene in the Emergency Department of this story in … [Read more...]
Downton Abby Doctors and The Evidence
Millions watched the latest episode of Downton Abbey where the lovely Lady Sybil’s protracted labor raises viewers anxiety as the drama unfolds. Relief engulfs the family as a healthy daughter is born and the weary mother told to rest. But even if you are not a clinician you are left with the feeling that things are still not right. Soon we see why…she experiences minutes of agony in seizures and dies as her family and the two physicians watch, helpless. Now what can we as 21st century folks take from this drama that may help us, or a loved one needing care? I believe stories are a rich … [Read more...]
Talking to Ourselves
Infections, medication errors, and hospital readmission are all topics in the lay press that raise everyone’s concerns. But what is a person to do when they are admitted or have a loved one in the hospital? This is a very important question and the answers are illusive despite the mounds of articles, press releases, and gazillions megabits of political rhetoric. As an industry, healthcare has done a good job identifying many of its problems and as a result there are plenty of businesses circling the scarred, and even bleeding, hospitals promising to heal those wounds. Clinicians, … [Read more...]
Patients Have a Voice: Did You Notice on October 1st?
If you listened to the Monday morning news with your coffee, the “dry” story about Medicare’s new payment structure to hospitals may have slipped by you, especially if are not “in the industry” or do not have Medicare insurance. But this is a significant story, particularly when we consider the importance of taking an active role in understanding our healthcare. Effective October 1st hospitals will be rewarded in dollars… or NOT… according to the outcome measures for 12 specific patient problems such as heart attacks, pneumonia and the use of antibiotics. The measures are designed to see … [Read more...]
Influencing Change in Today’s Hospital Care
Although regulators and payers influence many of the actions surrounding patient care, particularly in the hospital, the unadvertised and underused driving force for positive change comes from these important groups: These groups are . . . Patients & Families Clinicians Employers Their power comes from shared goals. (1)They want to achieve good outcomes from the care that is rendered. (2) They seek to prevent harm and (3) control unnecessary costs that are associated with medical mistakes, such as healthcare acquired infections. This is called “patient-centric” care. … [Read more...]
The 21st Century Patient
Welcome to my blog: 21st Century Patients. I hope to provoke critical thinking, and some discussion, on what it means to be a patient today. The culture of patient care is changing from “follow the rules as we prescribe them” to one that reflects the rapid pace of increasing knowledge that demands we think and act as partners with patients and families. This partnership is the basis of shared decision-making for the patient’s plan of care. An Outdated Approach We will explore the implications (and dangers) of holding on to the outdated idea that a “good patient” takes everything at … [Read more...]