Patient advocacy groups play a vital role in ensuring that patients receive the best possible care, especially in a healthcare environment that can sometimes be overwhelming and confusing. Advocating for patients with physicians is one of the most critical functions these groups serve. This article explores how patient advocacy groups can effectively advocate for their patients, ensuring that their voices are heard and their needs are met in medical settings.
Build Strong Relationships with Physicians
Establishing and maintaining positive relationships with healthcare providers is the foundation of effective advocacy. Patient advocacy groups should:
- Engage Regularly with Physicians: Regular communication helps build trust. Attend medical conferences, invite physicians to speak at advocacy events, and establish ongoing dialogue with prominent physicians in your disease area to keep lines of communication open.
- Educate Physicians: Advocacy groups can offer training sessions or provide resources to physicians about the specific needs and concerns of the patient populations they represent. This reduces the burden on patients to educate their physicians about their disease.
Foster Patient-Physician Communication
Advocacy groups should encourage and facilitate effective communication between patients and their physicians by:
- Providing Communication Tools: Offer patients and their families resources like question lists, communication guides, and decision-making aids to help them articulate their concerns and preferences during appointments.
- Coaching Patients on Self-Advocacy: Teach patients how to advocate for themselves, including how to ask questions, seek second opinions, and express their preferences clearly and respectfully.
- Coaching Parents: Equip parents with the knowledge and tools to effectively advocate for their children by providing access to comprehensive resources, such as educational materials, support networks, and guidance on navigating healthcare systems. For example, the Rare Disease Foundation has a roadmap for parents whose children do not yet have a diagnosis, including commonly ordered tests, tips for managing several appointments and recommendations, and advice from other parents about what to do when you disagree with your child’s physician.
Address Barriers to Care
Many patients face barriers that prevent them from receiving optimal care. Advocacy groups can help by:
- Identifying Common Barriers: These may include language barriers, financial constraints, transportation issues, or limited health literacy. Advocacy groups can work with healthcare providers to address these barriers, ensuring that all patients have equal access to care. For instance, Canadians in rural areas often have more difficulty accessing healthcare. In response, the BC Rural Health Network has been instrumental in deploying mobile clinics across rural British Columbia.
- Offering Support Services: Provide or connect patients with services such as translators, transportation assistance, or financial aid programs that can help them overcome obstacles to care. The Canadian Cancer Society, for example, offers transportation services and accommodation programs for patients receiving treatment.
Promote Patient-Centred Care
Patient-centred care, which places the patient at the heart of the healthcare process, ensures that care is tailored to the individual’s needs, preferences, and values:
- Understanding Patient Preferences: Encourage physicians to take the time to understand each patient’s unique preferences, values, and needs. This includes discussing treatment options in a way that is accessible and respectful, ensuring that the patient’s voice is central to decision-making.
- Promoting Holistic Approach to Care: Promote care practices that address not just the physical health of patients, but also their emotional, psychological, and social well-being.
Patient advocacy groups are crucial in ensuring that patients receive the care they deserve. By building strong relationships with healthcare providers, fostering communication, addressing barriers to care, and promoting patient-centred care, these groups can effectively advocate for their patients with physicians. Ultimately, the goal is to ensure that patient voices are heard and that they receive the highest quality of care possible.
