Tag: Sue Robins

Patient partners share what can go wrong with patient engagement

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 13 Comments

by Carolyn Thomas    ♥   @HeartSisters

The late Dr. Jessie Gruman was a beloved pioneering activist in the person-centered care movement, the founder of the Center for Advancing Health (CFAH) and the author of the book AfterShock: What to Do When the Doctor Gives You — Or Someone You Love — A Devastating Diagnosis.  She once defined the concept of patient engagement as “the actions people take to support their health, and to benefit from their health care” – a simple yet accurate definition. In 2014, I was interviewed for a CFAH report on patient engagement – a document I later described as “interesting, illuminating and frustrating”  in my follow-up essay called Patient Engagement (As Described by 31 Non-Patients).  I learned back then that how patients view patient engagement and how non-patients view it can be miles apart. And a new paper published this month may help to explain how this gap can affect patients themselves. Continue reading “Patient partners share what can go wrong with patient engagement” →

Saying the word “misdiagnosis” is not doctor-bashing

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 21 Comments
by Carolyn Thomas   ♥   @HeartSisters   
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Before my cardiac symptoms forced an early retirement, my entire adult career was spent in the field of public relations, in corporate, government and non-profit sectors. Which is to say I’ve had decades of firsthand experience speaking publicly on behalf of all kinds of people. I was paid to both defend the indefensible stupidity of certain industry presidents, and also to pitch engaging human interest stories to help promote good causes.
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But it was only when I started voluntarily speaking out on behalf of other female heart patients that I encountered any real backlash – and that came from the most unlikely sources.       .          .  Continue reading “Saying the word “misdiagnosis” is not doctor-bashing” →

Is the practice of medicine making doctors sick?

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 24 Comments

by Carolyn Thomas  ♥  @HeartSisters   

Sue Robins of Vancouver has an irresistible writing talent that’s somehow both quietly approachable and yet sneakily explosive. We see this talent in her books A Bird’s Eye View: Stories of  a Life Lived in Health Care or Ducks in a Row: Healthcare Reimagined.  We also see it in her compelling blog essay, “We Are All In This Together” as she explores the “basic lack of humanity that ails health care – a lack of humanity for patients, families, staff, clinicians, physicians and administrators.”  As Sue says:

“We are all in this mess together.    .     . Continue reading “Is the practice of medicine making doctors sick?” →

A perfectly ordinary workday. Unless you’re the patient…

~ Carolyn Thomas ~ 14 Comments

by Carolyn Thomas  ♥  @HeartSisters

I’ve lived on both sides of this scenario. For many years, my workplace was a hospital where I worked as the Communications Coordinator on the hospice/palliative care unit. I’d arrive at the hospital for work early each morning and easily navigate the maze of hospital corridors leading up to my office. I’d chat happily over coffee with my nurse and physician colleagues arriving for shift change, and then unlock my office door to prepare for that day’s busy schedule. Showing up at the hospital became as routine for me as showing up for work had been during over three decades of my PR career in corporate, government and not-for-profit sectors in other workplaces.

Yet on some level, I always knew that my familiar hospital workplace was anything but familiar to people out there who were making their way into that same hospital – but as patients.

Continue reading “A perfectly ordinary workday. Unless you’re the patient…” →