Patient empowerment - is it a new approach or just this year's buzzword?

摘要

Most health care delivery systems are poorly configured to treat chronic diseases such as diabetes effectively,according to Robert Anderson of the Department of Medical Education,University of Michigan,in Ann Arbor.Health professionals are well trained to deliver episodic symptom-driven care but often struggle with the treatment of chronic disease for which they have little direct control once the consultation has ended.In these cases daily care is largely in the hands of the patient.