Patients are People Too

January 25, 2025

Patients are people first. Patients are people who should have a voice in their care.

Patients are people. While this is inherently known amongst us all, the words do have some differences in meaning within healthcare settings.

The first pilot research study that I conducted investigated the meaning of knowing the patient. To know the patient is to know the clinical aspects of the individual as well as the personal aspects of the individual.

Of course, it is essential to understand the clinical needs of the individual patient. This includes the diagnosis, reason for visit, treatments and plan of care to name a few items.

However, as a person, the personal aspects of the the individual can be overlooked at times when a patient. This could be any type of preference. However patients tend to have categories of preferences. For example, I know that my right antecubital vein is very difficult to find in my arm whereas the one on the left tends to be easier. Knowing this as a healthcare provider can make a significant difference for the patient who sees his or herself as a person first.

Knowing this can save unnecessary sticks in the arm when knowing that the phlebotomist has a great chance of being unsuccessful the first time. Knowing this can make the person feel known as a patient. Knowing this can improve the patient experience overall.

Patient-centered care is one of the six categories of healthcare quality as defined by the Institute of Medicine (now the National Academy of Medicine).

Patient-centered care is defined as, “Providing care that is respectful of and responsive to individual patient preferences, needs, and values and ensuring that patient values guide all clinical decisions.”.

After all, patients are people too. Patients are people first. Patients are people who should have a voice in their care.

For patients, be sure to ask questions and share information that can help provide more individualized care.

For nurses, doctors and all healthcare professional roles, be sure to include patients in their care. They are the reason we are there and deserve to have a high quality experience.

I have an idea.

May 06, 2015    |   , , , , , , , ,

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Hopefully that sentence resonates with you. Everyone has ideas that come to us – all of a sudden – and usually when we are faced with a challenge. Ideas are important because they are the currency for innovating – for developing new solutions to existing problems. Without ideas we would be limited in creativity, change, and improvements in our lives. In health care, ideas have led to new solutions that transform the way we collect, communicate, exchange, analyze, and evaluate information. Yet, we need more ideas that lead to new solutions that can even further improve the structure, process, and outcomes of quality health care delivery.

A few months ago, I was invited to guest lecture to graduate nursing students at Northeastern University about innovation. I asked each student to formulate a problem that they see each day while working and bring it to class. During class we identified each problem and then I asked each nursing student to formulate a potential solution. Every student had a very real problem they are faced with each day at work – some were more complex than others – but we were able to form solutions that were reasonable and achievable with the right support, enthusiasm, and guidance. The nursing students felt empowered to work to address the identified problems. I hope that they did follow up and begin the process toward improving the desired outcomes.

I offer this scenario to encourage others to develop their ideas and foster further innovation in health care. Each day I see new problems that need to be solved. This blog, Know My Voice™ started as an idea. I wanted a way to share my informatics perspective, or voice, with a larger and broader audience than I could physically reach in the same amount of time. I look forward to seeing the future developments and impact of Know My Voice™ over time.