Among the many things that made the IxCenter’s Patient-Centered HIT Initiative great was listening in to what patients were saying about their care. We can learn an enormous amount from listening to consumers about their care experiences.

IxAction Alliance member, MedEncentive, has had great success in controlling costs and improving the experience of care by using clinician and consumer incentives for prescribing information (doctors) and filling Ix prescriptions (patients). One of the things that they do in collecting their data is invite consumers to share their comments about MedEncentive’s information therapy (Ix) program.

When you put together a string of these comments, you begin to get a picture of what Ix can do to improve consumer engagement, enhance the clinician-patient relationship, and launch an environment of participatory medicine.

Since we know that 40% to 80% of everything that a doctor says to a patient is forgotten by the time he or she returns home…

“I am thrilled to be able to get additional information and even to print it out to read again later.”

“I have learned things from reading articles that are provided. My doctor tells me numerous things but it is always nice to be able to research more at my own leisure.”

“Program provides more detailed information than a patient usually gets in the doctor’s office. Information often answers questions that come to mind after the office visit.”

“This information that is provided helps me understand what it is that I actually have or need to do. My Dr may tell me at the time of my seeing her, however the information doesn’t always stick in my head if I am not feeling well. This reiterates the information that my Dr had told me at the time of my appointment.”

Consumers typically appreciate navigation to resources that are targeted to their own situation…

“This is very helpful. It gives more information that is specific to the condition without having to research it on line yourself. Thanks.”

Ix can elevate the level of dialog between clinician and patient so that they can make better use of their limited time together…

“I think this program is very helpful. It allows me to understand better the things that my doctor and I talk about.”

“the articles are informative…it gives me information that I may not get in a 15-20 minute doctor appointment”

“I can see that this program is beneficial to me, by reading I educate myself a lot, there is some stuff that doctor don’t go deeply because of time, I guess, and by reading all this info, it is like it makes the picture more clear. Thank you for doing this!”

“Good means of informing patients in a more in-depth manner than is often possible in a doc’s office”

“I feel that it gives more comprehensive information than what I received in the Doctor’s office.”

That reinforcing information facilitates true participatory medicine…

“I am able to ask my doctor questions because of the knowledge I get from information therapy.”

Ix provides necessary reinforcement to stimulate behavior change…

“In our fast-paced world we often need to hear the same thing several times from several sources! I appreciate being reminded of steps that can/should enhance my quality of life–healthy eating, regular exercise, regular medical check-ups, etc. Most of us KNOW these things, but often overlook them until it’s too late!”

And, ultimately, consumers feel more prepared for what lies ahead for them…

“I feel very strongly about the benefits of information therapy. I learn a lot from reading the information…. Now I know more of what to expect if my condition worsens.”

Finally, Ix can help change the fundamental orientation of the delivery system…

“Information therapy has been very beneficial to me. It confirms the preventative therapies that my doctor recommends to me. This is a plus to my taking good care of myself and not all the time relying on medicine alone. I like this focus on wellness - to me it is what healthcare is about and not “sick-care” where we only do things when we are already sick. Thank you for this brilliant innovation. I wish the whole country will spouse your Wellness Program.”

This entry was posted on Monday, July 27th, 2009 at 11:50 am and is filed under Behavior Change, Consumer empowerment, Engaging Consumers, Participatory Medicine, Patient Stories, Patient-Clinician Relationship. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.