Sign Up Now
Get instant access to over 1 million+ study documents
OR
Already registered? click here to login
By creating your account, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and student honor code.
Health
Patient Empowerment
Patient empowerment is a relatively new concept that is part of the natural health faction, which believes that people have the power to change their environments and societal situations, and not just their personal behavior, to empower themselves and their health. It is extremely important, because the movement believes patients have the right to make their own decisions, and that definitely affects the healthcare profession and how they deal with patients. It benefits the patient because it involves them in their own healthcare, and allows them to make decisions, rather than simply following instructions from the caregiver. Following instructions reduces the involvement and investment of the patient, and so, they may not follow the instructions, and they may not benefit from them. Engaging the patient in their own healthcare choices makes them more involved and much more invested in the outcome. It also benefits the patients by empowering them to gain access to their medical records, to request a second opinion, and to stand up to the bureaucracy of the healthcare and insurance providers.
Of course, there are negative implications to patient empowerment. Not all patients will understand the nuances and aspects of their disease, and they may make emotional or uniformed decisions about their healthcare that could negatively affect the outcome of their treatment or disease. They also may not accept the diagnosis of a professional, even though it is correct, and demand more costly tests or confirmation, instead of quickly entering the treatment they need. This could actually lead to more patient mortality, due to lack of understanding, mistrust, and even miscommunication. Patient empowerment is a great tool for many patients, but some many misunderstand or misuse it to the detriment of their own health. Patients can empower themselves by reading more about their illness, asking questions, and demanding more information from their healthcare providers, so they can make informed decisions about their healthcare.
References
Editors. "Partnering for Patient Empowerment." Northwestern University. 2008. 19 June 2008. http://www.galter.northwestern.edu/ppeca/
Editors. "Patients are Powerful." PatientsarePowerful.org. 2008. 19 June 2008. http://www.patientsarepowerful.org/
Empowerment The concept of empowerment is not a new one, but it seems that within the last two decades it has become a buzz word. Thinking about empowerment goes back to people who were denied any type of rights whether that be to decide how they were going to live, work, eat, or make any decision regarding their own lives. It does not matter what era of history is perused there
Health Care Teams and Collaboration Delivery system of a health system depends on numerous interfaces and multiple practitioners. There are different health care practitioners in a health care institution depending on their field of practice and their level of education. During a four-day period in a health care institution, a patient may have a chance to interact with 50 different employees of the institution. These employees are nurses, physicians, technical staff
Health Promotion: The three levels of prevention in health promotion in nursing practice are primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention. The process of prevention in nursing practice is made up of preventing diseases, curing them, and restricting their progression. These three levels of prevention work towards health promotion, which is described as the combination of academic and environmental support for living conditions and actions that contribute to the well-being of an individual
Pender's is a theory of preventive medicine, for the healthy rather than the chronically ill. However, in an age where lifestyle-related disease are on the rise, it can provide an important function, particularly for nurses facing an epidemic of pre-diabetic and diabetic adolescents reared on poor diets and little physical activity. Some might protest that the genetic component to even Type II Diabetes, or obesity in general, might be
Therefore, I would tell the patient that their symptoms should not be considered in isolation of their whole person. Websites that address symptoms only are not taking into account the wealth of factors that can influence the diagnosis of a specific disease. At the same time, patients have the right to know about alternative solutions other than those provided or suggested by the physician or health care organization. Sometimes insurance
(Worcestershire Diabetes: a New model of care Stakeholder event, 2007) The continuum of care for the diabetic patient is shown in the following illustration labeled Figure 1. Diabetes: Continuum of Care Source: Worcestershire Diabetes: a New model of care Stakeholder event (2007) The continuum of care for diabetes begins at the moment that the individual is found to have diabetes and continues across the individual's health care providers and across the varying stages