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The Virtue and Value of Patient Empowerment and Health Literacy Amidst Healthcare Reform
Patient empowerment and health literacy are important and valuable attributes for both patients and healthcare providers in today's changing healthcare system which emphasizes improved healthcare quality, improved population health insurance and reduced healthcare costs.

Patient empowerment is really a key component of healthcare reform in that it is the development of the opportunity to understand and participate in one's healthcare and health management in order to bring about improvements in both while at the same time reducing healthcare costs.

As the current fee-for-service healthcare provider reimbursement system is currently along the way of transitioning from the volume-based system to a value-based one w here the value-based parameters are quality of care and costs, patient empowerment and health literacy are valuable to both patients and healthcare providers.

Health literacy, which is the power of patients to understand health-related information and use that information to create informed decisions, has been well-recognized by many in the healthcare community as a very important cofactor for the delivery of quality healthcare. The patient-related reason is that health literacy begets greater patient adherence to treatment instructions and better treatment outcomes. website -related reason is that the capability to make correct diagnoses and offer effective treatment come in large part determined by the quality of the info provided by patients, in spite of all of the diagnostic technology at our disposal.

The latter simple truth is supported by a study performed in the early 1990s where internal medicine physicians performed evaluations outside of the hospital on patients with undiagnosed medical problems then compared the rate of diagnostic accuracy of the three diagnostic modalities that physicians use, i.e., the patient history, physical examination and diagnostic testing. The analysis showed that of the three types of information relied on the history alone resulted in the right diagnosis being made 76% of that time period in comparison to accuracy rates of 12% and 11% when doctors relied on only the physical examination and diagnostic tests respectively.

Another study published within an August 2011 edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association which compared the relative need for the patient history, physical examination, and diagnostic tests showed conclusively that hospitalized patients in the study were accurately diagnosed frequently when doctors relied on the history alone or the history with the physical examination findings and/or test outcomes. Conversely, the study showed that whenever physicians relied on the physical exam or test outcomes solely or in combination accurate diagnoses were manufactured in only a small percentage of the patients.

The standard of healthcare received by patients is oftentimes determined to an excellent degree by the quality of the information they offer. Proficient health literacy usually results in more accurate and relevant information which results in more accurate diagnoses in addition to timelier and more appropriate treatment.

Additionally, proficient health literacy caused by patient empowerment reduces healthcare costs by decreasing overreliance on medical technology, unnecessary duplicate testing and costly errors resulting from actions based on incorrect or insufficient information.

As healthcare reform and healthcare payment reform continue steadily to evolve, the worthiness and need for patient empowerment are likely to increase. Therefore, patients and patients' caregivers should take the necessary steps to acquire a degree of health literacy to assume the increased patient responsibility accompanying the forces of reform.

This short article is for informational purposes only and isn't intended to be legal advice or a substitute for medical consultation with a professional professional. In case you are seeking legal services or are unsure about your medical condition you should consult an attorney and/or physician.

Victor E. get more info , M.D. is a board-certified internist and founder of Proactive Health Outlet. To learn more about patient empowerment also to access resources [http://www.proactivehealthoutlet.com/Resources.html] for improving health literacy visit www.proactivehealthoutlet.com
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