Case Study
Designing and Developing a Comprehensive Patient Education System
The Issue
In addition to being mandated by healthcare accreditation requirements for patient education, a pain management medical practice believed that educating patients improved healthcare outcomes through:
- Increased understanding of the patient's health status
- Increased compliance with the patient's healthcare plan
- Increased patient participation in healthcare decisions
The issue was to develop a process that aided the distribution of educational material to patients regardless of diagnosis or treatment received in the medical practice.
The Solution
We created a systematic approach that not only optimized the staff's ability to distribute patient education material, but also enabled the medical practice to comply effectively with healthcare accreditation requirements.
We researched and developed all educational material contained in the patient education system. In addition, we collaborated with other specialists to design the system in two phases to accomplish the desired outcome. The first phase was a printed version of patient education material, the second phase was a web-based interactive system. During both phases, patient learning was evaluated by healthcare providers to determine effectiveness of teaching and written material. Evaluation was done by the patients demonstrating learning or verbalizing their understanding of educational material.
The Result
The patient education system assisted the medical practice in complying with healthcare accreditation requirements, and in demonstrating in measurable results patient understanding of care and treatment of diagnosed conditions. In addition, providing patient education material demonstrated the practice's commitment to having its patients participate actively in their treatment. The patient education system also differentiated the medical practice from its competitors and contributed to the generation of new patients.