Patient Advocacy: A New Healthcare Trend
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s the healthcare industry becomes more complex, there is a growing desire for consumers to find trusted health professionals to assist them in navigating the complex healthcare system. Due to heavy patient loads, doctors can no longer be completely relied upon to help a patient through all the avenues of their medical journey. Patients need to equip themselves with resources. This is where the patient advocate comes into the picture. Why Consider an Advocate With the help of a healthcare advocate, the patient is empowered and able to demand the best possible care that is available to them. A patient no longer has to feel like they can’t play an active role in their own care because they lack knowledge of how to maneuver
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by Terri Test through the system. And, because healthcare costs are so high, with the help of an advocate, patients can feel more confident that they are getting the most for each healthcare dollar spent. Types of Advocates There are two main groups of patient advocates available to assist consumers. There are those that work for a private/public business or organization and those that work privately as independent business owners. Advocates who work in the private sector as independent business owners are contracted by the patient and have various backgrounds in nursing, social work, or years of personal experience helping others. Patient advocates that work for hospitals, other healthcare facilities, insurance companies, or government entities. The Alzheimer’s Association or American Cancer Society are examples of organizations that can serve as patient advocates. These private/public groups usually have advocates who have nursing, social work, or customer service backgrounds. Finding an Advocate Because this is an emerging field, more and more resources are becoming available to the consumer. Not every city, though, has the same resources. Consumers have to do some individual research on resources available in each city and state. The first place to start is one’s own doctor’s office. Sometimes a doctor or his/her staff can make referral suggestions. The next step could be to check with one of the following resources:
Website for your state’s local chapter of Office of The Patient Advocate Patient Advocate Foundation, www.patientadvocate.org AdvoConnection, www.advoconnection.com National Association of Health Advocacy Consultants, www.nahac.memberlodge.com There is so much information available on the internet now so it is a great place to do some research. You can also check with your local library and the medical library of a predominate hospital in your area. One final option to consider for finding a patient advocate might be for a patient to ask his/her own family, friends, or neighbors. Anyone who has traveled down a rough medical path in the past probably gained a lot of resources along the way. Terri Test is a Certified Health Coach and freelance writer. She supports her health clients by helping them make gradual, lifelong changes that enable them to reach their current and future health goals. You can find out more about her coaching program and sign up for a free one-hour health consult through her website www.balanceachieved.com. H&F
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