Will you be in or near Calgary on Friday, January 27th? Are you interested in healthcare and Alberta Health Services’ “Patient First Strategy”? If so, Mike, a member of the Pts4Chg community, is hosting an event that you may find of interest. Clicking on the image below will take you to Mike’s invitation.
The National Health Service in England hosted The People’s Transformation on Monday, November 28th. If you were unable to attend the event or missed some sessions, all is not lost. Recordings from the Transformathon will be accessible via the People’s Transformathon web page. They are sure to be worth watching, even if you attended the session live.
“Patient first” is a term that is often used in the health-care sector. However, are we first and foremost patients? Is that how we see ourselves?
According to Dr. Jordan Asher, he sees his patients differently. To him, he sees them as people first. “[I]n order for you to have a better health status, which includes healthcare, I need to think about you as a human being…We don’t look at people as diabetics; we look at them as people that have a bunch of life issues that happen to have diabetes.” How does this philosophy influence the manner in which Dr. Asher works with his patients? Click here to find out.
The term “patient engagement” is one that is frequently stated and bantered about. However, what does it really mean? Why is such engagement important? How can patient engagement be fostered and promoted, so it becomes more than a theoretical idea or ideology and something that is real and realized?
According to Dr. Anhalt, an individual who treats pediatric patients with type 1 diabetes and chief medical officer for T1D Exchange, patient engagement is critical. Among other things, it sees patients becoming engaged in their own care, resulting in living healthier lives and experiencing better outcomes. Based on this understanding, Dr. Anhalt discusses tips for successful patient engagement. They include: educating patient and families, encouraging patients to engage in their health outside of a doctor’s office and using all patient interactions as opportunities for learning. To read the full article, click here.
“AHS [Alberta Health Services] put out a nice video with a succinct description of how patients and families are at centre of their work. I quite liked it.. Have a look if you are interested.” – Troy, a member of the Pts4Chg community.
In an online post, Sheila, a member of the Pts4Chg community, raises an important topic. How does one obtain assistance for oneself or others when it comes to health care? How does one
tactfully get help for yourself or a loved one, or even possibly someone we don’t know who is in the hospital and we see that he/she is not getting the care that the Dr. prescribed, such as meds being missed or denied, patient not being fed, etc. Sadly, only those who have a loved one who comes to visit, will get these issues fixed, but I have seen (too many times) meals delivered to people without a loved one there to feed them, which were just picked up and taken away when the dietitians came back to collect trays, no one to feed those who are the most sick and alone or help them get the care the Dr. prescribed. In my local hospital, those with visitors get the most care because then there are ‘witnesses’ to what did or did not happen. The ones who are alone are in a dangerously negligent position.
Any comments and suggestions relating to this topic are welcome.
Over 1250 acute or chronic pain patients participated in an online survey by Pain News Network and the International Pain Foundation that focused on hospital pain care. Based on the results obtained, many pain patients felt that the treatment they received from a hospital was far less than ideal. As one pain patient stated, “It’s so bad that I will not seek treatment in an ER or hospital unless I really feel like my life is in jeopardy. They do not get it, they do not listen, and they do not care.” Another individual wrote, “I refuse to go to ER. It will end up killing me because I know how sick I am, but I would rather die than deal with ignorant, condescending doctors and nurses.” To read more about this study’s findings, click here.
The above video – “The Difference Between Care and Caring” recently won a number of local and national awards, including Best in Show at Edmonton’s ACE Awards.
What an incredible night for the Royal Alexandra Hospital,” Andrew Otway, president and CEO of the Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation, said. “This was a video that really came together so beautifully and effectively because of the staff and leadership at the Royal Alex. We are so immensely proud of this hospital, the people who work here, and the difference they make each day.”
Click here to read more about the video and the family involved.
When discussing topics relating to health care, the term “patient voice” is commonly used. However, what does it really mean? What is the difference between patient voice and patient engagement? Is the patient voice important? If so, why is it important and to whom is it important?
In a recent blog post found on the Association of Medical Research Charities’ website, Dr. Andrew Clempson and Melody Eaton state the following:
The patient voice is incredibly important for many of our members. We know it helps drive policy areas, and we also know that it is used widely in research – from setting strategies to informing peer review of research and helping with recruitment for studies. But the term ‘patient voice’ isn’t always clearly defined or well understood.
Click here to read the full blog post.
In a recent article, Thomas R. Frieden notes that public health and clinical medicine should work together but all too often, this is not the case. As a means of addressing this situation, Frieden suggests that the two areas can be integrated effectively by making patients the VIPs of the system. What does it mean to make the patient the VIP? Read the article to find out.
