A few weeks ago I wrote about 5 steps you could take to improve your patient education. I promised I would dig deeper into that material. That’s what this article is about. Specifically, we’re taking a closer look at patient knowledge. Let’s start with some data: Elisabeth is describing her first meeting with her new […]
Patient Education
Reach more patients by reducing cultural bias in your metaphors and analogies
Metaphors and analogies are favored tools of poets — and doctors. They invite us to see a person, idea, or object differently, by inviting comparisons. Providers use them often, to explain complex physiological phenomena to patients. They may even improve physicians’ communication. So what’s the problem? Sometimes they don’t work. They can even give patients […]
5 steps to improve your patient education
Frequently, when I am talking to providers about heath communication, or health literacy, we end up talking about patient education. That makes sense; there are many connections among these subjects. And I’m an educator. But physicians are often frustrated when their patient education doesn’t have its intended effect. One physician put it to me this […]