How do you encourage patients to take an active role in their care?

I believe it’s important for patients to take an active role in their own care by remaining constantly curious. Curious patients equate to a need to learn and know more.

It is vital health professionals setup a relationship where patients feel safe and welcome to ask questions. This includes regularly inviting questions, as well as being mindful of the quality of the answers we provide. We shouldn't just provide an answer, we need to ensure our patients understand through strategies such as asking follow-up questions, or encouraging them to repeat back to you what they have learnt and understood. If we show that we are willing to answer their questions as clearly as possible, this will hopefully allow the patient to feel that it is worth taking the time to ask.

It is very important to involve patients at every step of the diagnosis and treatment. It is the responsibility of the health care professional to explain and to make sure that the patient assimilated most if not all the information given. This may not be that easy and will require multiple visits. On the other hand, the patient has to read more about his condition and this will help the healthy interaction between the patient and the HCP.

This is very important. As an epilepsy specialist, I rely on the patient's notes to better understand the response to treatment as well as the change in character of seizures. Smartphones are very important tools to understand and see as studies teach us that the family description of events most of the time is not 100 percent accurate and that's why it is important to combine both descriptions and objective findings as to capture events on videos.

As a patient myself, I realize our healthcare system lacks a cohesive network that allows for easy communication between EHRs (electronic health records), which is why I use my notes app on my phone to keep my own records for me and my loved ones. You must always advocate for yourself and do not feel embarrassed to take notes during a visit with your provider.

I cannot stress enough how important it is for patients to have a Support network as we all know that medications and pills are important however treating stress and other emotional situations will increase the yield of response as well as compliance to treatment.

Absolutely take an active role in understanding your medical conditions and avenues to take to help with problematic symptoms, alternative treatments etc. However, never try to become a “Dr Google” that can usually do more harm than good.

I always encourage patients to be their own best advocate and ensure that they feel like they are a part of the healthcare team. I remind patients that they know their body and needs better than anyone else so it’s important that they ensure that they are being heard. I also remind people that if their healthcare provider is not the right fit for their needs that it is ok to ask for someone who is the right fit. It’s also ok to ask questions because at the end of the day doctors are just humans too and can make mistakes.

One very important aspect of encouraging patients to take an active role in their care is empowerment. Health challenges have a way of bringing people down, of making them feel powerless, silenced, marginalized. A patient advocate’s role is to help their community by empowering them, by making them see their experiences matter, that their voices can and will be heard and last but not least that they can make a change for the better. Patient empowerment is key in patient advocacy.