Society for Participatory MedicineCommentary
We welcome submissions for this section of JoPM. Commentary can be video, podcast or print essays and reviews of topics (e.g., innovation in peer review) and events (conferences, courses, lectures) relevant to the discussion of participatory medicine. If you are interested in submitting a commentary, you may do so here.
Commentary, Vol. 7, 2015
Lightning Goes to Ground
Peter Elias | April 10, 2015
What really drives positive change in health care? A participatory physician argues that the key is the autonomy and empowerment of individual patients.
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Participatory Care in the Nursing Home Setting
Constance K. Smith | February 23, 2015
Resident and family participation in nursing home care is becoming more the rule than the exception. The author’s challenge to nursing homes is to design formal ways to make it easier for patients and families to provide feedback.
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Digital Photography and the Medical Selfie
Kara Burns | February 11, 2015
Patient generated health data – especially medical photography – can be very powerful aids in diagnosis and doctor-patient and communications.
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Patient and Family Access to Electronic Health Records: A Key Ingredient for a Pediatric Learning Health System
K.T. Park, Michelle D. Park and Christopher A. Longhurst | January 21, 2015
Giving patients access to their own EHRs could encourage them to better co-manage their disease as well as to contribute to ongoing clinical research.
Read MoreCommentary, Vol. 6, 2014
The Future of Primary Care: One Medical Student’s View
Joseph P. Allencherril | November 12, 2014
Both patients and physicians have grown too accustomed to the status quo of long waits and too little time to discuss the patient’s health or ask questions. The author envisions a future where primary care visits offer greater convenience and better outcomes for both practitioner and patient.
Read MoreCommentary, Vol. 6, 2014
Addressing the Problem of Medication Non-Participation
Nancy B. Finn | October 10, 2014
There is mounting evidence that patient non-participation in taking prescribed medications is associated with adverse outcomes and higher costs of care. The author analyzes the problem and offers practical solutions.
Read MoreCommentary, Vol. 5, 2013
A Model for the Future of Health Care
Charles W. Smith, Terry Graedon, Joe Graedon, Alan Greene, John Grohol and Danny Sands | May 16, 2013
Today’s patients have access to more medical information on their smartphones than late-twentieth-century Surgeons General had available to them from all their health information resources. Major change is afoot in health care. What will that change look like?
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Shared Decision Making: Using Federal Health Policy as a Lever to Support Implementation
Jessica M. Osborne-Stafsnes | May 10, 2013
Many clinicians and patients may agree that shared decision making (SDM) will control health care costs and improve efficiency, but we need a clear and coordinated national strategy to support implementation of SDM if it is to deliver on its promises.
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It’s Time to Account for Medical Error in “Top Ten Causes of Death” Charts
Bart Windrum | April 24, 2013
Including fatal medical error in “top ten causes of death” charts and in public end-of-life discussions would be an act of participatory medicine on several counts: for medicine, ownership, transparency, and disclosure; which would offer citizens the opportunity to factor in medical error as we strive toward the goal of a peaceful death.
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Relationships Will Never Be Obsolete in Medicine
Peter Elias | February 8, 2013
I have always believed that the relationship between the patient and their clinician is a vital part of care. But I wonder if I have misunderstood what is going on.
Read MoreCommentary, Vol. 4, 2012
Collaboration, Communication and Connection: Fostering Patient Engagement in Health Care
Nancy B. Finn | September 5, 2012
Engaging patients is a collaborative process that begins with good communication.
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The Impact of Open Access and Social Media on Scientific Research
K. Thomas Pickard | July 18, 2012
Traditionally, research papers undergo peer review before publication. Two trends, open access and social media, are changing the peer review process.
Read MoreCommentary, Vol. 3, 2011
The Rewards of Being a Participatory Health Care Provider
Dan Hoch | December 14, 2011
The author gives the provider’s perspective on the story of a woman who became an engaged advocate for her two disabled sisters, and touches on some of the principle tenets of participatory medicine that guided their work together.
Read MoreCommentary, Vol. 3, 2011
Medication Adherence: More than Reminders
Kathy Kastner | October 3, 2011
Focusing on reminders alone ignores the many other factors that contribute to nonadherence, improper use, and potentially harmful results. Better patient-provider communication is crucial to solving these problems.
Read MoreCommentary, Vol. 3, 2011
A Skydiver Jumps, and an Online Community Exults
Brian Loew and John Novack | September 19, 2011
A cancer patient shares a joyful story with her online support group and is surprised to learn how much it means to her fellow members.
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My 8-Point Participatory Philosophy: What Makes Me a Participatory Patient
Kathy Kastner | September 6, 2011
The author reflects on the eight attributes that make up her personal definition of a participatory patient.
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Sharks, Bees, and Health Privacy Paranoia
Fred Trotter | July 5, 2011
The issue that the e-patient community should be focusing on, in regard to health information exchange, is accuracy. Inaccurate health data hurts people far more frequently and significantly than privacy violations.
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Who Gets to Define Quality?
Dave deBronkart | March 14, 2011
After three years of looking at US health care, trying to figure out why it refuses to improve, I have a humble but impatient suggestion: When we talk about quality, we should only include measures that patients agree define quality.
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Health Care: A Human Rights and Economic Justice Issue
Kathleen McCaffrey Friedman | March 7, 2011
It ultimately falls to us, the patients, to frame health care as a human right and matter of economic justice, alongside national security, public education, and disaster relief.
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A Participatory Medicine Journey
Kathy Kastner | February 15, 2011
It can be hard to be a vigilant participatory patient. It can be fraught with emotions and fear of repercussion. But it’s harder to be in the dark.
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