As patients wait for their appointments, they may be overwhelmed by a multitude of symptoms, questions, and concerns. These thoughts can lead to a series of conversations with their clinician. They often don’t get through the entire list or miss the most important issues.
Dr. Clifton Bingham is a rheumatoid-arthritis specialist at The Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, Md. She hates to see patients’ perspectives fail to make the cut. “The current measures that we use in practice often do not incorporate these perspectives,”He said.
Bingham and his colleagues, funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute(PCORI), are assessing the impact of a greater emphasis on chronic conditions in patients. This is a way to improve communication between patient and clinician, share decision-making, and deliver the best outcomes for patients.
These outcomes can include pain, fatigue, sleep quality, mood, and mood in those suffering from rheumatoid. On the other hand, physicians, nurses, and other clinicians tend to give more weight and clinical measurements such as joint swelling, imaging, and lab results, to patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Patients with rheumatoid arthritis are given an iPad by Bingham when they wait in the waiting area. The tablet contains a questionnaire about the patient’s health, including their mental, social and physical health. The questions each patient is asked are based on the answers they have given to previous questions. This results in more personal questions than the ones that were previously provided in hard-copy.
“For the first time in 15 years I was giving accurate, honest answers,”Julie, a patient who participated in the study, said:
The doctor reviews the results at the end of each appointment and discusses them with you. “[We] may find that new things come up from the questionnaires that the patient didn’t think was important to mention or that the doctor didn’t ask about,”Bingham:
Patients’ initial feedback is very positive. “I was able to have a more honest conversation with Dr. Bingham about my treatment goals, options and preferences,” Julie said.
PCORI funds 50 pilot projects to support research that answers important questions for patients, their families and caregivers. Patients, caregivers, and other stakeholders in the health care system are required to guide the work funded by the institute.
Participate in PCORI’s research and make sure it answers your questions health questions that are most important to you and your family, visit pcori.org/getinvolved.
