patients

And Above All – Establish Trust

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For many years I’ve heard from patients across the country with questions about their healthcare. Not medical questions; rather questions about something in the healthcare system that isn’t working the way they want, or expect it, to work. They can’t get their doctors to answer their questions, or the insurance company has turned them down for a test or treatment, or they got a bill they didn’t expect – or – ______ (fill in the blank with hundreds more questions!) There is one theme that runs through every question; – that is – a lack of trust. In every case, …

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Forum Fireworks Tackle the Question: Who Is Qualified to Be a Patient Advocate?

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(Originally published September 2011. Updated September 2019) Fireworks erupted in the APHA Forum recently. I call them fireworks because those involved are so passionate about their work – no matter what their points of view. Fireworks are awe-inspiring and truly beautiful, even if they don’t accomplish much, which is exactly what transpired. The questions and statements that caused that passion are worth sharing here, because they can help all of us clarify our roles in this growing profession of patient advocacy and navigation. The initial question was ” I’d love to hear from advocates –like me– who do not have …

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Happy Birthday AdvoConnection! Will You Help Us Celebrate?

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Two years ago today, we launched AdvoConnection as the premier directory for patients and caregivers to find a health or patient advocate or navigator, and to support the business starting and growing efforts of advocates. Happy Birthday to Us! You might be interested in what this journey has looked like so far: > More than 270 people are advocate or pre-advocate members of AdvoConnection. Most are in the process of exploring advocacy as a career. > 12 non-profit patient advocacy organizations are registered with AdvoConnection. > More than 2,100 people visit the directory site each month in search of an …

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What Shall We Call Ourselves?

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I’ve just returned from a marvelous week visiting with, and participating in, patient empowerment and advocacy experiences that included activities like video, webinars, panel discussions and pot luck dinners. A whirlwind! More impressive, however, is the variety of interests and skills of the wonderful people I met and worked with. From patients, to patient safety experts, to providers, to educators, to administrators, to hospital employees, to – yes – patient advocates. You can imagine the discussions that took place! During the week, my brain was going a million-thoughts-per-hour as we covered dozens of topics related to both empowerment and advocacy. …

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The Option of Saying “NO”

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Several months ago I wrote about the tendency of big-hearted advocates to over-extend themselves with volunteer work; that when someone needs their help, but doesn’t have the means to pay them, they don’t know how to say “no.” We looked at some of the ways to get past that inability in order to keep our businesses moving forward. Truth is, that is only one of the circumstances where “no” is the right answer. That’s true whether it is us, as professional advocacy business owners who must choose to say no, or whether we must help our clients choose “no” if …

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YOMs – and That Sense of Entitlement

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It arrived in my email a few days ago – a demand for a reply. It came from a person who reads my articles at About.com. She had sent me a question the day before regarding trouble she was having getting copies of her records from her doctor. I had not yet responded to that email. The second one arrived, shouting in capital letters: WHY DIDN’T YOU ANSWER MY QUESTION? I SENT IT YESTERDAY AND YOU HAVEN’T ANSWERED IT YET! There it is. A simple example of that sense of entitlement we all seem to be dealing with. I get …

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Advocating – It’s Like Nailing Jello to a Tree

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(No – that’s not Dad in the photo – but this gentleman is quite representative!) Last week I shared notes from my father’s hospital bedside as he began his recovery from back surgery. The majority of his hospital stay was safe and successful, although we continued to have big problems managing his pain throughout. Dad was discharged to a skilled nursing center to convalesce and begin rehab. He’s well on the road to recovery. We have much to be thankful for. As mentioned previously, my work does not typically include helping individual patients with their healthcare challenges. I write and …

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