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Nowadays, most patients want to be more engaged with their well-being. They want to know causes and symptoms of their ailments instead of just being treated. As a result, there's an increasing demand for high-quality patient education. After all, teaching a patient self-care means he or she is more likely to thrive, he or she is more likely to feel confident when it's a concerted care effort. That said, the idea of creating patient education materials can seem daunting. And many healthcare workers might need a hand getting started. Here are a few tips:
Create a few guidelines
It's not just the elderly and the seriously ill who benefit from patient education and self-care. Think about common problems you see on a day-to-day basis or health conditions that could easily be prevented, and create materials you can easily hand out.
Patient-specific programs
Creating individualized plans for each patient doesn't have to be a Herculean task—it simply means giving out information specific the patient's concerns or conditions (e.g., nutrition and diet plans, personal hygiene, sexual health, follow-up care, safe and effective use of medications).
Keep in contact
Some simple ways to keep your patients up to date on self-care: Direct them to an online resource you trust. Or better yet, establish an online presence yourself. This way you can bring your unique voice to the table and create your own materials pertinent to patient care. Oh, and one last thing. Let them know you're available for them. If you let patients know they can contact you—or your practice—with healthcare questions, you'll build trust, plus give them peace of mind.