The Informed Patient: Information Prescription
The Dr Foster Ethics Committee devised and sponsored a project to promote information sharing between the public and healthcare professionals. The aim was to produce something of practical value rather than a policy based paper that would not impact on the way healthcare is delivered.
The focus of the project was the importance of information in the clinician-patient relationship, the nature of the information that patients and carers need, the role of the healthcare professionals in ensuring patients and carers get that information, and the challenges and obstacles involved.
In February 2007 the Dr Foster Ethics Committee arranged a seminar in Boston, USA. Various professionals in the healthcare field from nurses to Chief Executives attended the seminar in order to explore the measurement of performance and outcomes in the UK and USA, working towards a simple output that would define what was meant by 'well-informed patients', and establishing the key questions that patients should expect their clinicians to answer.
The seminar produced an impressive 150 ideas for questions. Following the seminar, these were narrowed down to 11 main questions and an e-forum was set up to refine the document. The final result is a user-friendly guide for patients and those affected by diagnoses (i.e. relatives and carers) to help them to become informed patients. It is hoped that patients will use this as a resource for information about their condition and the full range of treatment options whilst, at the same time, creating a contract of understanding and cooperation between patient and clinician.
Seminar attendees:
- Pam Garside, New Health Judge Business School, University of Cambridge, Facilitator of the Boston workshop.
- Dr Jack Tinker (chair of the Dr Foster Ethic Committee), Emeritus Dean of the Royal Society of Medicine.
- Naaz Coker, chair, St George's Healthcare NHS Trust
- Baroness Cumberlege, Former Health Minister, Chair of Council, St George's Hospital Medical School
- Dr Helena Earl, consultant oncologist, Addenbrooke's NHS Trust.
- Bridget Gill, Head of Corporate Services (York), Department of Health.
- Dr Dianne Hayter, Chair, Board member of National Consumer Council.
- Dame Deirdre Hine, former chair of the Commission for Healthcare Improvement, immediate past president of the BMA.
- Sir Donald Irvine (vice chair), former president General Medical Council.
- Professor Alan Maynard, director, Health Policy Unit, York University and chair, York Health Services NHS Trust.
- Bernadette Porter, Nurse Consultant Multiple Sclerosis, The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery Therapy and Rehabilitation Services.
- Harry Cayton, Director for Patients and the Public, Department of Health.
- Professor Sir Brian Jarman, Director, Dr Foster Unit at Imperial College.
- Jean Mossman, former CEO Cancer Backup.
- Dean White, The Information Centre for Health and Social Care.
- Alastair McLellan, Health Service Journal.
- Maureen Bisongano, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Institute of Healthcare Improvement.
- James Conway, Senior Vice President, Institute of Healthcare Improvement.
- Dr. M. Rashad Massoud, Senior Vice President, Institute of Healthcare Improvement.
- Dr. Younsook Lim, Institute of Healthcare Improvement Fellow.
- Annette Bartley, Institute of Healthcare Improvement Fellow.
- Patricia Rutherford, Vice President, Institute of Healthcare Improvement.
- Bonnie Zell, Institute of Healthcare Improvement.
- Dr. Charles Homer, President & CEO, National Initiative for Children's Healthcare Quality.
- Dr Tom Lee, President, Partners Community Health Care Network.
- Professor Eugene Nelson, Dartmouth Medical School.
- Professor Elliott Fisher, Dartmouth Medical School.
- Dr. Suzanne F Delbanco, CEO, Leapfrog.
- Alide Chase, Vice President of Quality and Service, Kaiser Permanente.
- Dr. Sanne Magnan, President, Institute for Clinical Systems Improvement.
- Cathy Schoen, Senior Vice President, Commonwealth Fund.
- Karen McKinley, Vice President Clinical Effectiveness, Geisinger Health. System.
- Donna Towers, Vice President, Capital Health Centre Canada.
- Stephanie Alexander, Senior Vice President, Premier Healthcare Informatics.
- Professor Howard Hiatt, Harvard Medical School.
- Dr. Jack Lord, Senior Vice President - Chief Innovation Officer, Humana.
- Donald Kemper, CEO, Healthwise.
- Professor Philip Hassen, Canadian Patient Safety Institute.
- Tim Kelsey, Chairman of the Executive Board, Dr Foster Intelligence.
- Hilary Rowell, Head of Strategy, Dr Foster Intelligence.
- Helen Rowntree, Policy and Research Manager, Dr Foster Intelligence.
- Ellen Klaus, Head of Operations, Dr Foster Research.
View the 'Information Prescription'