Why does 'Patient Education' matter?
An informed patient is a patient who can contribute to the 'safety net' that we health care providers, attempt to surround them with during their visit. We have many such safety nets in place: confirming physician orders, tw0-nurse checks and proper patient lifting techniques, if only to name a few. However, patient knowledge can contribute to that safety net as well: knowing their medications, understanding treatment plans and even recognizing unsafe situations.
Good Education versus Bad Education
Patients might find that they can't get much (or any) information from their health-care provider. Pamphlets or brochures aren't always available and they're usually only written at a Grade 6 level. As a result, patients will look elsewhere...and they might wind up knee-deep in the wrong resources. I think we can all agree that we have access to a wide variety of information these days, but can come from a variety of so-called 'experts' who are really just very opinionated! Numerous 'medical websites' exist on-line, where patients can view medical information written as though it were 'fact', when it really isn't much more than rumour or hearsay.
For Example, Let's Look at Blood...
A patient might be scheduled for surgery and they might also have heard about the possibility of autologous blood donation. The patient feels that this is something they'd like to pursue so they ask their surgeon about it. Their surgeon might or might not be able to provide much detail about the subject, so the patient decides to investigate on their own.
Now, Alberta Health and Wellness has some excellent material on the site: MyHealth.Alberta.ca This site is a good resource with noted authors, dates of updates and other indicators of good medical resources. The trouble is, it's not easy for the average patient to find this site if they don't know to look for it!
If a patient were to do a simple Google search on 'autologous blood', they would most likely come across: BloodBook.com This site doesn't have all the quality markers, but certainly looks bold and flashy...and it was easy to find.
If we don't look at quality Patient Education as an integral part of Patient Safety, we'll miss that opportunity to strengthen the safety net around our patients.
I think this is a very insightful post and I agree with your points; a great way to get discussion going.
ReplyDeleteI wanted to add that in addition to timely access to quality educational materials, an important human factor is to create situations which encourage patients to speak up with questions and concerns at the point of care.
As a librarian, I'm very excited to see this link between Patient Safety and Patient Education. Two major themes emerge for me from this post: Patient Education and the ability to give patients appropriate info. And Health Literacy - the ability for patients to process the information given to them.
ReplyDelete