Family physician, author, blogger, speaker, physician leader.

Tag Archive for patient engagement

Make the Most Out of Your Doctor Office Visit – You Just D.A.T.E.D. Your Doctor!

Book excerpt from The Thrifty Patient -Vital Insider Tips for Saving Money and Staying Healthy   You Just D.A.T.E.D. Your Doctor You’ve told your story. Your doctor gets it. He has completed the physical exam. He formulates a plan to get you better. The next skill you should master may be as important as being a great storyteller. Your doctor has told you the treatment plan. Do you remember what you need to do? A 1996 study at the Mayo Clinic showed that patients remember less than half of what physicians tell them during office visits. Of nearly six hundred patients who were asked to recall what diagnoses physicians had discussed with them, 54 percent could not remember the major problems. Of patients whose doctors had discussed with them the risk factors for heart disease, 68 percent did not recall any discussion about tobacco use, 62 percent did not remember […] Read More »

The Truth about Medical Tests. Do I really need an MRI? Do I really need blood work? Book Excerpt

Book Excerpt from The Thrifty Patient – Vital Insider Tips for Saving Money and Staying Healthy. The Truth about Tests. Do I really need an MRI?  Do I really need blood work? This often? Should I avoid talking to my doctor and jump right to tests? Americans love technology, whether it’s carrying the latest iPhone or buying the newest flat-screen TV with 3D technology. Naturally, our fascination with technology has spilled over into medical care, where everyone, including doctors in training, seems focused on what the x-ray, CT scan, MRI, or blood work showed. Sadly, this trend is seriously misguided. More testing does not lead to better care. More testing does not lead to more accurate diagnoses. Research has shown that Americans receive too many tests and procedures compared to other countries. If anything, more testing seems to be associated with worsening health. The leading cause of radiation exposure is […] Read More »

Is HealthTap Good for Doctors?

Is HealthTap good for doctors? I had a chance to hear Ron Gutnam, CEO and founder of HealthTap, at the 2013 Stanford Innovation Health Summit. He describes it best (comments begin at 3:00). “Patients or people can get health answers from physicians in minutes for free using their mobile devices, using their web browser from any time and any where. We started with pediatricians and obstetricians serving pregnant women and moms. Less than two years we have expanded our physician network to over 37,000 US licensed physicians in good standing, 128 specialties in all 50 states. We have physicians in over 3100 cities across the country. You can go to HealthTap, ask any question you want and get an answer for free in minutes or a few hours. There is a shift in how people want to get their health information today, from whom, and how fast they expect to […] Read More »

The Thrifty Patient – Book Review / Testimonials

I’m humbled and privileged to review high praise and testimonials for my book –The Thrifty Patient: Vital Insider Tips for Saving Money and Staying Healthy from those working hard to make health care more accessible, higher quality, and more affordable. In an ideal world, our health care system would be incredibly simple to access, extremely convenient, and intensely personal. It would allow patients to focus on staying healthy and healing and getting the right preventive care and treatment the first time and every time. It would not have them worrying about medical errors, wrong site surgeries, unnecessary surgeries / procedures / treatments, their own (patient) safety among other things. We are not there yet. Nevertheless, those who have provided the testimonials are also making our future system that much better though their work, actions, and words. As we all build to fixing our health care system completely, books like The […] Read More »

Recasting the Patient as Consumer – Good Idea? Consumer Driven Health Care?

Are patients now consumers? I recently jumped at the opportunity to attend the 2013 Healthcare Innovation Summit at Stanford Graduate School of Business. Subtitled IT-Enabled Disruption, it featured opening keynote speaker Aetna CEO Mark Bertolini, Stanford psychologist and lecturer Dr. Kelly McGonigal, and many other interesting people asking – how do we change health care? Recasting the Patient as Consumer As a practicing primary care doctor, the most intriguing session was labeled – “Recasting the Patient as Consumer”. I have major reservations that this is what patients really want.  I have some skepticism on whether consumer driven health care can truly make care more affordable (here, here, here, and here). Was the current fad of pushing the onus of health squarely on the individual may be too simplistic? Panel members included: Ron Gutman, founder and CEO of HealthTap Bassam Kadry, Anesthesiologist and Participatory Medicine Advocate Ann Lamont, Managing Partner of […] Read More »