How Easily We Can Misinterpret the Benefits of Patient-Centered Innovation!
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | May 8, 2013 | Jessie Gruman
Here's the bad news: We will not benefit from the health care services, drugs, tests and procedures available to us unless we pay attention, learn about our choices, interact with our clinicians and follow through on the plans we make together.

‘Healthy Privilege’ – When You Just Can’t Imagine Being Sick
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | May 6, 2013 | Carolyn Thomas
What I’ve learned since my heart attack is that, until you or somebody you care about are personally affected by a life-altering diagnosis, it’s almost impossible to really get what being sick every day actually means…

The Best Health Care Decision is Realizing That There Are Choices
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | May 2, 2013 | Wendy Lynch
Perhaps the most powerful influence we can have in health care is simply acknowledging that we have choices and wondering, out loud, what those might be. Whether or not you plan to do in-depth research about your treatment options, consider asking your doctor three simple questions.

The "True Grit"-tiness of Sharing Health Care Decisions with Our Doctors
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | May 1, 2013 | Jessie Gruman
In the Coen brothers remake of the 1969 movie True Grit, Mattie Ross, an intrepid 14-year-old, is determined to hunt down and kill the man who murdered her father. To accomplish this, she hires U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn, (played by a mumbling Jeff Bridges) a rough, one-eyed veteran of many such quests then announces that she plans to come along. She figures she is prepared.

Bad Language: Words One Patient Won't Use (and Hopes You Won't Either)
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 24, 2013 | Jessie Gruman
When I read Trudy Lieberman’s post yesterday, I was reminded that the highly charged political debates about reforming American health care have provided tempting opportunities to rename the people who receive health services. But because the impetus for this change has been prompted by cost and quality concerns of health care payers, researchers and policy experts rather than emanating from us out of our own needs, some odd words have been called into service.

Teaching Patients about New Medications? A Picture Is Worth 1000 Words
HBNS STORY | April 30, 2013
Improving people’s knowledge and skills about their medications may be best achieved with multimedia patient education materials, finds a new systematic review in The Cochrane Library.

Whose Patient Engagement Goals Are We Talking About?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 17, 2013 | Jessie Gruman
What we look for when we participate actively in our health care differs from what our clinicians, employers and health plans believe will result when we shift from being passive to active participants. We don't have the same goals in mind. Does this matter?

Has Patient Engagement Stalled?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 10, 2013 | Jessie Gruman
A few discouraging reports on patient engagement have skittered across my desk in the past few weeks. What's going on? Why are so many of us so slow to engage in our care when it is increasingly clear that we will do better if we participate more fully? Here's what I suspect...

Self-Tracking Tech Revolution? Not So Fast…
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 8, 2013 | Carolyn Thomas
When the report called "Tracking for Health" was released last month, media headlines announced: “Over Two-Thirds Track Health Indicators!” Surprisingly, very few headlines ran the real news from the report: “Only 21% Use Technology to Self-Track!” Yet as of last autumn, more than 500 tech companies are busy developing The Next Big Thing in self-tracking tools.

Health Care Consumers Are Compromised By Complex Information
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 4, 2013 | Jane Sarasohn Kahn
Americans have embraced their role as consumers in virtually every aspect of life: making travel plans, trading stock, developing photos, and purchasing goods like cars and washing machines. That is, in every aspect of life but health care.

Patient Activation Is Only Half the Solution – Physicians Need to Be Activated as Well
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 1, 2013 | Stephen Wilkins
Focusing just on what the patient brings to the party in terms of their “knowledge, skills and confidence” is only half the problem. What about physician activation?

Primary Care Physicians Missing Early Signs of Serious Mental Illness
HBNS STORY | March 21, 2013
Primary care providers could help people with warning signs of psychosis get critical early treatment and potentially reduce the current burden on emergency departments and inpatient units, finds a study in the journal Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology.

What Do Patients Need From Clinicians?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | March 20, 2013 | Jessie Gruman
In response to their February issue, New Era of Patient Engagement, Health Affairs launched a new Facebook initiative to connect people with patient advocates. I was honored to kick off the Q&A series.

A Disconnect: What Hospitals Want You to Know vs. What You Should Know
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | March 19, 2013 | Trudy Lieberman
The Association of Health Care Journalists (AHCJ) is making hospital inspection reports from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services available at AHCJ’s new website www.Hospitalinspections.org. The site is not perfect, and there’s a lot of missing information, but still it provides some information about hospitals that has been lacking and offers a basis for asking questions.

Email and Texts to Doctors: Not Just for High-Income Patients
HBNS STORY | March 12, 2013
Low-income patients served by “safety-net” community health centers want to communicate with their doctors via email or text or are already doing so, according to a new study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

Patient-Centered Care: It’s All in the Details
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | March 12, 2013 | Trudy Lieberman
Having had one eye surgery a few months ago, I knew what to look for. But my patient experience was much different this time and made me aware of how many places in the chain of care where mistakes can occur.

Prepared Patient Videos

CFAH President Jessie Gruman shares her Prepared Patient story.

The Team Will See You Now...What Team?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 27, 2013 | Jessie Gruman
Have you heard that soon most primary care in the US will be delivered by teams? Yep. Team-based care is one of the characteristics of the patient-centered medical home, a way of organizing the care of patients that allows primary care clinicians to see more patients in a day while at the same time delivering better care.

Pharmacists Can Improve Patient Outcomes
HBNS STORY | February 28, 2013
In addition to dispensing, packaging or compounding medication, pharmacists can help improve patient outcomes in middle-income countries by offering targeted education, according to a new review in The Cochrane Library.

An Open Letter to Mobile Health App Developers and Their Funders
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 13, 2013 | Jessie Gruman
Two recent experiences left me ornery and impatient about the current state of mobile health apps. Why haven’t they just taken off?

An Accidental Tourist Finds Her Way in the Dangerous Land of Serious Illness
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 6, 2013 | Jessie Gruman
Health Affairs February issue, A New Era of Patient Engagement, selected my essay, An Accidental Tourist Finds Her Way in the Dangerous Land of Serious Illness, for its Narrative Matters piece. In the essay, I share experiences from my latest cancer diagnosis and call for policies to support patients and families with the increased responsibilities they face to find good health care and make the most of it.

5 Steps to Building a Great Partnership with Your Doctor
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | January 24, 2013 | Leana Wen
The last time you went to your doctor, did you feel like he listened to you? Or did you feel ignored and left with more questions than answers?

Making a Pact With Your Doctors
PREPARED PATIENT ARTICLE
A shared care plan can be a guide to treatment goals that you and your doctors agree on, and it can set the rules of engagement as you pursue your treatment.

Talking About Symptoms With Your Health Care Team
PREPARED PATIENT ARTICLE
"What brings you here today?" It's a simple question that's at the heart of many patient-doctor conversations, but it's not a question to take lightly.

Effective Patienthood Begins with Good Communication
PREPARED PATIENT ARTICLE
Given all the obstacles that prevent us from getting to the doctor's office — scheduling an appointment, digging out the insurance card and plain old procrastination — it is good health sense to make the most of your time when you are finally face-to-face with your health care provider. Easier said than done, says health researcher Sherrie Kaplan.

Prepared Patient: Making a Pact With Your Doctors
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | December 28, 2012 | Health Behavior News Service
Being a prepared patient means taking on some of the jobs 'big and small' that are necessary for staying healthy and coping will illness. Just like with any other job, it helps to have the job description clearly laid out before you start work. Your doctor may be expecting you to do certain tasks from filling prescriptions to changing your sleep or diet that can help you make the most of your care.

When You Fear Being Labeled a “Difficult” Patient
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | December 10, 2012 | Carolyn Thomas
Most patients know what this feels like, so it’s reassuring to learn that academics are actually studying it: our fear of being labeled a “difficult patient”.

Comparative Effectiveness Research: Richard Birkel of the Center for Healthy Aging & NCOA
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | December 5, 2012 | Richard Birkel
We believe that CER can be a valuable strategy to improve health care'?¦We are concerned, however, that older adults have often been excluded from clinical trials of drugs, medical devices and procedures.

Comparative Effectiveness Research: Donna Cryer of the American Liver Foundation
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 20, 2012 | Donna Cryer
Patients are not opposed to comparative effectiveness research. I think they understand its value to health care decision-making. But physician-scientists and policymakers rightly perceive the inherent tension between personalized medicine and CER.

Comparative Effectiveness Research: Perry Cohen of Parkinson Pipeline Project
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 14, 2012 | Perry Cohen
It would be nice to know if a treatment is totally worthless or that there are truly horrible side effects to a treatment or that a treatment really won't help slow the disease or relieve the symptom it's aimed at.

Patient Satisfaction: Quality, Cost and the New Rules of Engagement
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 6, 2012 | Holly Korda
It's not enough for patients to be merely satisfied with their health care. Our expectations and perceptions of the patient experience vary widely, but at the end of the day what we seek is health care that is patient-centered: care that meets our needs. Patient-centered care requires patient engagement and self-efficacy, our active participation in our health and disease management.

Decision Aids Sway More to Get Screened for Colon Cancer
HBNS STORY | November 6, 2012
People who are given tools to help them decide whether to have a colorectal cancer screening test are more are likely to request the procedure, finds a new study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Comparative Effectiveness Research: Mary Andrus of Easter Seals
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 31, 2012 | Mary Andrus
Easter Seals sees CER as a real opportunity for good information about treatment choices. Wanting to always be person-centered, we hope CER can inform the choices of individuals and families made in consultation with their providers but that CER will not prescribe the treatment.

When Your Doctor Says, “I Have Bad News”
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 30, 2012 | Jessie Gruman
In "When Your Doctor Says, 'I Have Bad News'" I offer advice on how to cope with a scary diagnosis - without getting caught up in the chaos of fear. Written by Jon Spayde for Experience L!fe magazine’s November issue.

Comparative Effectiveness Research: Maureen Corry of Childbirth Connection
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 24, 2012 | Maureen Corry
Despite availability, evidence doesn't always make its way into practice. If we could implement what we know now about safe and effective maternity care, we would see rapid improvements in the quality, outcomes, and value of care for women and babies.

Patient Engagement: No App Can Take the Place of Good Old Conversation
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 15, 2012 | Stephen Wilkins
Physicians, hospitals and other providers are being misled by industry pundits claiming that more health information technology (as in EMRs, PHRs, Smart Phone apps, and web portals) is the key to greater patient engagement. It'??s not.

Comparative Effectiveness Research: Venus Gines of Dia de la Mujer Latina
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 10, 2012 | Venus Ginés
As a patient advocate, it's always good to know what the best treatment options are for our patients. As we continue to see so much fraud in research, there is mistrust about validity of data and the research itself relative to particular at-risk communities.

Comparative Effectiveness Research: Gail Hunt of the National Alliance for Caregiving
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 26, 2012 | Gail Hunt
Gail Hunt is president and CEO of the National Alliance for Caregiving and serves on the Board of Commissioners for the Center for Aging Service Technology, the Governing Board of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), and the CFAH Board of Trustees. This is the third in a series of interviews between CFAH President and Founder Jessie Gruman and patient and consumer group leaders about their experiences with and attitudes toward comparative effectiveness research.

Guest Blog: Getting Engaged
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 24, 2012 | Elaine Waples
We hear inspiring things about patient engagement. The very concept has a hearty, spirited, do-right sound to it. After two years of cancer treatment, there are a few fundamental principles I think patient engagement should mirror.

A Year of Living Sickishly: A Patient Reflects
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 13, 2012 | Jessie Gruman
The essays collected here reflect on what it felt like as a patient with a serious illness, to cobble together a plan with my clinicians that works and to slog through the treatments in the hope that my cancer will be contained or cured and that I will be able to resume the interesting life I love.

Even With Personalized Assessments, Many Underestimate Disease Risks
HBNS STORY | September 11, 2012
People with a family history of certain diseases, including heart disease and diabetes, often underestimate their risk for developing them, even after completing a risk assessment and receiving personalized prevention messages, finds a new study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Online Health Information Finally Clicks
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 22, 2012 | Jessie Gruman
Kristen Gerencher of The Wall Street Journal’s MarketWatch, recently interviewed me about internet users and online health information.

Home Alone? Discharge Planning Starts at Hospital Admission
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 1, 2012 | Jessie Gruman
“...If you need a wheel chair to take you to the door, I’ll call for one. If not, you can go home. Take care of yourself. You are going to do great!” Now I am a sucker for encouraging words, but right then, I panicked...It was 8:45 in the morning. My husband hadn’t yet arrived. I was free to walk out the [hospital] door.

Getting Over My Fear of Doctors
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | July 31, 2012 | Heather Thiessen
Growing up, I was always in awe of my doctors. It was almost as if they lived on a cloud. You never ever questioned their expertise, and very rarely would you ask for a second opinion. Going to the doctor was a nerve-wracking experience, where you spoke only when they asked questions. I always wondered what would happen if I did question them. But I never did. I was too afraid.

Why I Write: A Doctor's Tribute to Her Mother
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | July 23, 2012 | Leana Wen
My mother, Sandy Ying Zhang, is my role model and my inspiration for what I do every day. She was diagnosed with breast cancer when she was in her forties, and fought it courageously for seven years until she passed away in 2010.

What Does It Matter to You: Patient Activation and Good Health Outcomes
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | July 20, 2012 | Janice Lynch Schuster
In our current health care environment, in which patients are sometimes discharged quicker and sicker, they are expected to be more in charge activated than ever. They need to make and keep follow-up doctor appointments, manage complex medication regimens, organize home health care and visiting nurse appointments, store powerful medications, and track, monitor, and report changes in their health status. It's a tough order, especially for people like my father, who do not know or understand the health care system, and find its workings difficult to navigate.

Consumer Ambivalence About Health Engagement ' Will OOP Costs Nudge Us to Engage?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | July 19, 2012 | Jane Sarasohn Kahn
In some surveys, U.S. consumers seem primed for health engagement, liking the ability to schedule appointments with doctors online, emailing providers, and having technology at home that monitors their health status.

Fast Food Medicine: A Missed Opportunity for Shared Decision Making
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | July 13, 2012 | Sarah Jorgenson
Though I may want 'fast food health care' when I'm healthy, I don't want it if I'm sick or have the potential to be sick. People want to have the opportunity for a dining-in experience, not just fast food.

Slow Leaks: Missed Opportunities to Encourage Our Engagement in Our Health Care
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | July 12, 2012 | Jessie Gruman
The gap between the demands placed on us by U.S. health care delivery and the ability of individuals ' even the most informed and engaged among us ' to meet those demands undermines the quality of our care, escalates its cost and diminishes its positive impact on our health.

The Valuable Knowledge of Patients with Diseases Like RA
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | July 9, 2012 | Kelly Young
A few weeks ago, in front of a few friends and lots of total strangers, I shared experiences about RA and explained specific ways that direct patient input could improve every aspect of health care, from research to diagnosis to treatment delivery.

Use of Patient Centered Medical Home Features Not Related to Patients' Experience of Care
HBNS STORY | June 6, 2012
Providing patient care using key features of a Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH), a model of health care delivery promoted by major physician groups, may not influence what patients think about the care they receive, reports a new study in Health Services Research.

Doctors Need Training to Help Smokers Quit
HBNS STORY | May 17, 2012
Health care professionals do a better job helping people quit smoking when they are trained in smoking cessation techniques, a new Cochrane Library review finds.

Are You Afraid of Being Labeled a Difficult Patient?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | May 16, 2012 | Barbara Bronson Gray
Turns out we're a nation of doctor pleasers when it comes to health care. A recent study found that patients avoid challenging their physicians because they're afraid of getting the "difficult patient" label.

What's Engagement Now? Expert Sarah Greene Discusses Emerging Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | May 9, 2012 | Sarah Greene
I discovered somewhat by accident early in my career -- that science makes faster progress and produces better results if more people with a range of different expertise are brought together. In the past 10 years, I've extended this belief to patients' participation in their care.

Three Fears May Discourage Colorectal Cancer Screening
HBNS STORY | April 30, 2012
New research about why people forego colorectal cancer (CRC) screening suggests that three fears play a significant role; fear of embarrassment, fear of getting AIDS and fear of pain may make some seniors skip the potentially lifesaving tests.

Personalized Interventions Work Best for People with Multiple, Chronic Illnesses
HBNS STORY | April 18, 2012
People with multiple chronic medical conditions are helped by medical interventions that target personal risk factors and/or their ability to perform daily activities. Interventions aimed at general case management or enhancing teamwork among a patient’s care providers are not as effective, finds a new review in The Cochrane Library.

What's Engagement Now? Expert Kalahn Taylor-Clark Discusses Emerging Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 18, 2012 | Kalahn Taylor Clark
I am interested in how public and private policy can make it possible for most people in this country to take good care of themselves.

Guest Blog: A Second Opinion from Dr. Google
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 16, 2012 | Carolyn Thomas
I've often suspected that if only the E.R. doctor who misdiagnosed me with indigestion had bothered to just Google my cardiac symptoms (chest pain, nausea, sweating and pain radiating down my left arm), he and Dr. Google would have almost immediately hit upon my correct diagnosis.

Guest Blog: How to 'De-Frag' Your Health Care
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 6, 2012 | Barbara Bronson Gray
If your computer has ever slowed way down you may have been advised to "defrag," which puts all parts of a file together in the same place on the drive, enabling it to run faster and more efficiently. In much the same way, your health care might need to be de-fragged.

What's Engagement Now? Expert Janet Heinrich Discusses Emerging Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 4, 2012 | Janet Heinrich
Primary care is the entry point into health care for most people. It provides the continuity of care over the lifespan. From that standpoint, it is the most familiar, trusted experience people have with health care.

Guest Blog: Defining Patient Engagement
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 3, 2012 | Anne Polta
Everyone in health care is talking these days about patient engagement, but a funny thing happened on the way to the discussion: There doesn't seem to be a widely agreed-on definition of what this actually means.

Guest Blog: Marcus Welby, House and the Wizard of Oz
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | March 22, 2012 | Elaine Waples
Things are different for me now. Today I belong to that group of people with serious illnesses who spend lots of time in doctors' offices, diagnostic labs, and imaging centers. I quickly discovered that I had some interesting choices about my care.

What's Engagement Now? Expert Maulik Joshi Discusses Emerging Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | March 21, 2012 | Maulik Joshi
The participation of individuals and their caregivers in hospital care has taken on increasing importance for us in all our activities as we have come to realize how central those attitudes and behaviors are to the delivery of quality care.

What's Engagement Now? Expert Chris Gibbons Discusses Emerging Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | March 14, 2012 | Chris Gibbons
I think that if people are ever going to be able to use technology to engage in their care, the technologies have to be built for them and have to be usable by them.

What's Engagement Now? Expert Patricia Barrett Discusses Emerging Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 29, 2012 | Patricia Barrett
One way NCQA looks at patient engagement is in the choice arena, by helping people pick who they'll get their care from. We provide information for people and purchasers to use to make choices about individual clinicians, practices and health plans, for example, based on objective ratings.

The Clinician's Role in Patient Engagement
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 27, 2012 | Inside Health Care
This week, three health care insiders highlight the role physicians play in promoting patient engagement.

Primary Care Doctors Fail to Recognize Anxiety Disorders
HBNS STORY | February 21, 2012
Primary care providers fail to recognize anxiety disorders in two-thirds of patients with symptoms, reports a new study in General Hospital Psychiatry.

What's Engagement Now? Expert Douglas Kamerow Discusses Emerging Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 15, 2012 | Douglas Kamerow
Three of the things that optimal patient engagement depends on are TIME, TOOLS and TEMPERAMENT. Clinicians and patients experience each of these differently, but they are central to us working together to get the best possible outcomes.

'Patient Engagement!' Our Skin is in the Game
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 8, 2012 | Jessie Gruman
The idea that we should actively participate in our health care now attracts attention akin to the discovery of a cure for the common cold.

What's Engagement Now? Expert Carol Cronin Discusses Emerging Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 1, 2012 | Carol Cronin
Most people still assume that they don't need to worry about the quality of the care they receive, whether it is from a doctor, in a hospital or in a nursing home. It's pretty frightening to realize that you do have to care about it, because it means you have to assume the burden. If quality does vary, you have to do the research. This is hard to deal with when you are upset.

What Are the Chances We Need to Understand Probability?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | January 25, 2012 | Jessie Gruman
We are all going to have to become tougher and smarter, even when we are sick if we are going to benefit from the health care available to us. What is it that we really need to know to do this successfully?

What's Engagement Now? Expert Gail Hunt Discusses Emerging Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | January 18, 2012 | Gail Hunt
This interview with Gail Hunt is the first in a series of brief chats between CFAH president and founder, Jessie Gruman, and health care experts'among them our CFAH Board of Trustees'who have devoted their careers to helping people find good health care and make the most of it.

Lessons from the Year of Living Sick-ishly
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | January 11, 2012 | Jessie Gruman
The new year set me reflecting about what I've learned about being sick over the past 12 months that only the experience itself could teach me. You know that old Supremes song, 'You Can't Hurry Love'? I learned that you can't necessarily hurry healing either, even if you work hard at it.

A Patient-Doctor Relationship Make-Over
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | December 13, 2011 | Conversation Continues
There is a growing recognition that the doctor-patient relationship needs to evolve from the traditional model of dominant doctor/passive patient to one that is more collaborative. Here are examples of how this relationship affects people's involvement in their care.

Guest Blog: Terms of Engagement: Co-Creating Our Future with Patients
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | December 12, 2011 | Gary Oftedahl
Today, physicians are confronted with an explosion of new technology, increasingly complex interventions, and an evolving focus on the need for longitudinal support of health issues, requiring increased involvement of our patients. While we may use different terms'engagement, involvement, empowerment, activation'in our discussions, all of them speak to the need to have active participation from patients and, in many cases, their family and other caregivers.

Don't Miss the Chance to Engage Us in Our Care When Introducing Patient-Centered Innovations
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 30, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
I believe that it is unrealistic to expect that we will easily understand and ably engage in team care, shared decision making, care coordination and make use of patient portals of EHRs. Each of these carries the risk of being misunderstood by us in ways that further disenfranchise our efforts and good will unless it is discussed ' and recognized ' as the valuable tool it is.

Doctor-Patient Relationship Influences Patient Engagement
HBNS STORY | November 29, 2011
Patients who feel their physicians treat them with respect and fairness, communicate well and engage with them outside of the office setting are more active in their own health care, according to new study in Health Services Research.

Who Will Help Cancer Survivors Stay Healthy When Treatment is Over?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 16, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
It is completely understandable if you associate the term 'cancer survivor' with an image of glamorous, defiant Gloria Gaynor claiming that She. Will. Survive. Or maybe with a courageous Lance Armstrong in his quest to reclaim the Tour de France. Or perhaps it is linked for you with heroic rhetoric and pink-related racing, walking and shopping.

1st Person: Are Doctor Ratings Sites Useful?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 15, 2011 | First Person
When it came time for Jennifer Stevens, an Omaha, Nebraska resident and mother of two, to find an obstetrician for her first baby, she was faced with a dilemma.

Prepared Patient: Using Physician Rating Websites
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 15, 2011 | Health Behavior News Service
User reviews and ratings on websites can help you locate a reputable handyman, the perfect restaurant for your anniversary dinner or the right TV for your den. So why wouldn't you turn to the Internet to find your next doctor? New health review sites promise to help you make this important decision for yourself or your loved ones. However, patients and physicians alike are finding that these doctor reviews aren't as transparent or useful as they might seem.

Guest Blog: Hard Cold Facts, or Hard Cold Doctors?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 10, 2011 | Andrew Robinson
I was first diagnosed while on vacation in 1994. A doctor entered the room and, without warning, said that I had 'a terminal and incurable form of leukemia' and 'less than five years to live.' Just like that. Turns out he was wrong'

Take a Number
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 8, 2011 | Inside Health Care
Nobody likes to wait. And patients and doctors alike are frustrated by the general waiting that seems to be an inevitable part of delivering and receiving care. Here, Art Markman, Lisa Gualtieri, and anonymous patient blogger WarmSocks share their views.

Patient Engagement: Expert Trudy Lieberman Talks About Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 7, 2011 | Trudy Lieberman
This interview with Trudy Lieberman is the ninth and final of a series of brief chats between CFAH president and founder, Jessie Gruman and experts - our CFAH William Ziff Fellows - who have devoted their careers to understanding and encouraging people's engagement in their health and health care.

Guest Blog: When Patients Demand Treatments That Won't Work
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 4, 2011 | Carolyn Thomas
When my son Ben came down with a sore throat this past summer, he went to his doctor for antibiotics. Both agreed it sure sounded like strep, so without having to wait for the throat swab test results, Ben left the office with a prescription for antibiotics. But were they the appropriate treatment? Do all bugs need drugs?

Getting the Patient's Perspective in Research: Will PCORI Deliver on its Promise?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 2, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
One major challenge for the new Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) is to make good on its stated mission to improve health care by producing evidence 'that comes from research guided by patients, caregivers and the broader health care community.'

Patient Engagement: Expert Carol Alter Talks about Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 31, 2011 | Carol Alter
This interview with Carol Alter is the eighth in a series of brief chats between CFAH president and founder, Jessie Gruman and experts - our CFAH William Ziff Fellows - who have devoted their careers to understanding and encouraging people's engagement in their health and health care.

Employee Programs Teaching Health Care “Consumer” Skills May Also Produce Health Benefits
HBNS STORY | October 31, 2011
A workplace program designed to teach employees to act more like consumers when they make health care decisions, for example, by finding and evaluating health information or choosing a benefit plan, also improved exercise, diet and other health habits, according to a new study in the latest issue of the American Journal of Health Promotion.

Ethnic Differences in Appointment Keeping Affect Health of Diabetes Patients
HBNS STORY | October 27, 2011
Ethnic differences in appointment keeping may be an important factor in poor health outcomes among some minority patients with diabetes, according to a new study.

Drop-kicked into a Foreign Country
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 26, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
We patients are always tourists in the world of health care. Whether we are coming to our doctor's office to rule out a strep infection, a clinic for a bi-monthly diabetes check-in, or a hospital for surgery, we don't work here.

Guest Blog: Instant Access & Old Faulty Assumptions
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 25, 2011 | Rima Rudd
The current literature indicates that we in the various health disciplines provide texts that are poorly written and organized, web sites that are hard to navigate, as well as charts and graphs that are difficult for many to interpret and use. I say that we can make information truly accessible and usable by adding needed rigor to our work.

Patient Engagement: Expert Judith Hibbard Talks about Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 24, 2011 | Judith Hibbard
This interview with Judy Hibbard is the seventh in a series of brief chats between CFAH president and founder, Jessie Gruman and experts - our CFAH William Ziff Fellows - who have devoted their careers to understanding and encouraging people's engagement in their health and health care.

"That's Not What I Wanted to Hear!": Evidence-Based Medicine and Our Hard Choices
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 19, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
American health care treads a fine line between trying to serve the good of the many and the interests of the individual. But no one has yet figured out a cost-effective, yet humane, way to do both.

Patient Engagement: Expert Shoshanna Sofaer Talks about Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 17, 2011 | Shoshanna Sofaer
This interview with Shoshanna Sofaer is the sixth in a series of brief chats between CFAH president and founder, Jessie Gruman and experts - our CFAH William Ziff Fellows - who have devoted their careers to understanding and encouraging people's engagement in their health and health care.

Patient Engagement: Expert Kate Lorig Talks about Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 11, 2011 | Kate Lorig
This interview with Kate Lorig is the fifth in a series of brief chats between CFAH president and founder, Jessie Gruman and experts - our CFAH William Ziff Fellows - who have devoted their careers to understanding and encouraging people's engagement in their health and health care.

Off Pitch: Simple Conversations Go Astray
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 6, 2011 | Patient Perspectives
In this round-up, patient bloggers describe a mix of difficulties they experience in everyday conversations due to their illnesses.

Patient Engagement: Expert David Sobel Talks about Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | October 3, 2011 | David Sobel
This interview with David Sobel is the fourth in a series of brief chats between CFAH president and founder, Jessie Gruman and experts - our CFAH William Ziff Fellows - who have devoted their careers to understanding and encouraging people's engagement in their health and health care.

The Formidable Complexity of Making (Some) Health Decisions: Book Review
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 28, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
Can we have 'evidence-based' care and 'shared decision making'? Are they in concert or in competition with one another? Drs. Pamela Hartzband and Jerome Groopman's new book, Your Medical Mind: How to Decide What is Right for You, argues that a crash is indeed imminent.

Patient Engagement: Expert Molly Mettler Talks about Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 26, 2011 | Molly Mettler
This interview with Molly Mettler is the third in a series of brief chats between CFAH president and founder, Jessie Gruman and experts - our CFAH William Ziff Fellows - who have devoted their careers to understanding and encouraging people's engagement in their health and health care.

Will Oz Connect Washington with the People in the Heartland on Health Care Quality?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 21, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
When I think back over the past 35 years and my treatment for now four different cancer-related diagnoses, I am amazed by how much has changed. The diagnostic and treatment technologies are light years more sophisticated and effective.

Patient Engagement: Expert Connie Davis Talks about Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 19, 2011 | Connie Davis
This interview with Connie Davis is the second in a series of brief chats between CFAH president and founder, Jessie Gruman and experts - our CFAH William Ziff Fellows - who have devoted their careers to understanding and encouraging people's engagement in their health and health care.

Our Experience Trumps Policy in Changing Our Health Care Beliefs
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 14, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
Our discomfort with the array of private and public sector proposals to improve health care quality while holding down costs should not be surprising. Most of us hold long-standing, well-documented beliefs about health care that powerfully influence our responses to such plans. For example, many of us believe that' if the doctor ordered it or wants to do it, we must need it.

Reminder Packaging Helps Patients Take Medications as Directed
HBNS STORY | September 13, 2011
People with chronic illnesses are more likely to take long-term medications according to doctors’ instructions if the packaging includes a reminder system, according to a new review of evidence

Patient Engagement: Expert Dale Shaller Talks about Challenges
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 12, 2011 | Dale Shaller
This interview with Dale Shaller is the first in a series of brief chats between CFAH president and founder, Jessie Gruman and experts - our CFAH William Ziff Fellows - who have devoted their careers to understanding and encouraging people's engagement in their health and health care.

Informed Consent & Doctor-Patient Communications in the News
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 30, 2011 | Conversation Continues
The recent case of Phillip Seaton, a Kentucky man who sued his surgeon after having a partial penile amputation, raises concerns about the effectiveness of the informed consent process, general health literacy and problems with doctor-patient communications.

Inside Health Care: Barriers to Care: ''a Failure to Communicate'
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 24, 2011 | CFAH Staff
A new study shows that 21% of adult Americans delay seeking health care for reasons other than cost. In this collection, a doctor, a journalist, and a health care manager discuss the need for improved systems and candor to support better doctor-patient communication.

'Ask Me if I Washed My Hands and Drank Gatorade in the Last Hour'
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 23, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
Do you suffer from decision fatigue when you are sick or anxious or overwhelmed by bad health news? Does your doctor make less well-reasoned decisions about the 10th patient she sees before lunch? How about the surgeon during his second operation of the day? How about the radiologist reading the last mammogram in a daily batch of 60? A provocative article by John Tierney in Sunday's NYTimes Magazine adds a new layer of complexity to the body of knowledge collecting around decision-making processes.

Americans Face Barriers to Health Care Beyond Cost
HBNS STORY | August 19, 2011
Just getting to the doctor, making appointments and taking time off from work or other responsibilities are major hindrances for some people to getting the medical care they need.

The Complexities of Non-Compliance
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 18, 2011 | Conversation Continues
In recent discussions about patient non-compliance, Stephen Wilkins, Dr. Stewart Segal and patient Ann Silberman all emphasize that doctor-patient communication is key.

Patient Navigators Might Reduce Disparities in Cancer Care
HBNS STORY | August 16, 2011
Past research shows that minorities suffer higher rates of advanced cancer and deaths from all types of cancer compared to whites. The role of “patient navigator” is emerging as a tool to address these disparities.

Guest Blog: Summer Palpitations
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 15, 2011 | Katherine Ellington
When her mom has a heart emergency, medical student Katherine Ellington learns first-hand how health statistics apply to real life. This is the first in a series of three posts.

Making Informed Health Care Choices
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 4, 2011 | Conversation Continues
Recent pieces at HealthNewsReview Blog and in the Washington Post highlight the need for accessible and reliable information about health care services.

Bad Language: Words One Patient Won't Use (and Hopes You Won't Either)
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 3, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
"There is a better way - structural reforms that empower patients with greater choices and increase the role of competition in the health-care marketplace." Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) August 3, 2011. The highly charged political debates about reforming American health care have provided tempting opportunities to rename the people who receive health services. But because the impetus for this change has been prompted by cost and quality concerns of health care payers, researchers and policy experts rather than emanating from us out of our own needs, some odd words have been called into service.

Guest Blog: Can the Blind Lead the Seeing?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 1, 2011 | Amy Berman
Many of you know that eight months ago I was diagnosed with Stage IV inflammatory breast cancer, which has spread to my spine. My incurable diagnosis means that I live with a chronic disease, just like millions of older adults.

Too Much Information in Medical Decision Making?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | July 22, 2011 | Conversation Continues
Paula Span of The New York Times New Old Age blog could have used more information about medical risks when helping her father decide whether to remove a benign mole. Span wanted to know what the odds were of a benign mole turning malignant.

Engagement Does Not Mean Compliance
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | July 13, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
Engagement and compliance are not synonyms. I am compliant if I do what my doctor tells me to do. I am engaged, on the other hand, when I actively participate in the process of solving my health problems.

Understanding Your Medical Risk: Nice or Necessary?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | July 12, 2011 | Conversation Continues
Sam Wainwright from New America's Health Policy Program offers his opinion on the controversy surrounding whether or not doctors should present or withhold data about patients' medical risks.

Obese Mexican-Americans Lack Diet, Exercise Advice From Doctors
HBNS STORY | June 30, 2011
Only half of obese Mexican-American adults receive diet and exercise advice from their physicians, although obesity is on the rise for this group.

What's Expected of You at Your Doctor's Office?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | June 14, 2011 | Stephen Wilkins
When you or I visit an accountant, a lawyer or car mechanic, we know what our role is and have a pretty clear understanding of what the ' expert' is supposed to do. But when it comes to a trip to the doctor these days the roles and responsibilities of patients and physicians have become blurred and unpredictable'and the patient seems to generally be on the losing end.

Appointment in Samarra*: Our Lives of Watchful Waiting
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | June 8, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
Watchful waiting has become a way of life for many of us. Last week Sam had his first six-month scan following treatment for esophageal cancer. It showed that that the original cancer had not recurred and that the tumors behind his eyes and the hot spots on his kidneys and liver hadn't grown. Sam and his wife, Sonia, are celebrating for a few days before they return to worrying, checking for symptoms and counting the days until the next scan.

Conversation Continues: Hospital Discharge Without a Net
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | June 7, 2011 | CFAH Staff
In The Wall Street Journal's Informed Patient column, Laura Landro notes various efforts hospitals are taking to prevent re-admissions, including Boston University Medical Center's use of a virtual nurse named Louise.

Most Primary Care Physicians Don’t Address Patients’ Weight
HBNS STORY | June 7, 2011
Fewer than half of primary care physicians talk to their patients about diet, exercise and weight management consistently, while pediatricians are somewhat more likely to do so, according to two new studies.

1st Person: After Years of Treatment, a Time to Wait
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | June 6, 2011 | First Person
For many freshmen, the first year of college is devoted to classes, work and socializing, with little thought given to health or longevity. But for Nikkie Hartmann, a Chicago-based public relations professional, the start of her college career also marked the start of 14 years of dealing with cancer.

Prepared Patient: Watchful Waiting: When Treatment Can Wait
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | June 6, 2011 | Health Behavior News Service
In today's fast-paced world, waiting ' whether it's at the doctor's office, in line at the grocery store or for an Internet connection ' is rarely considered a good thing. But when it comes to certain medical conditions, delaying treatment while regularly monitoring the progress of disease ' a strategy doctors refer to as 'watchful waiting,' active surveillance or expectant management ' may benefit some patients more than a rush to pharmaceutical or surgical options.

What Must We Know About What Our Doctors Know?
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | May 25, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
'The most important thing I learned was that different doctors know different things: I need to ask my internist different questions than I do my oncologist.' This was not some sweet ingénue recounting the early lessons she learned from a recent encounter with health care. Nope. It was a 62-year-old woman whose husband has been struggling with multiple myeloma for the last eight years and who herself has chronic back pain, high blood pressure and high cholesterol and was at the time well into treatment for breast cancer.

Researchers Still Searching for Ways to Help Patients Take Their Meds
HBNS STORY | May 12, 2011
Clinicians have tried a variety of ways to encourage people to take prescribed medicines, but a new research review says it is still unclear whether many of these interventions have been effective.

RN Staffing Affects Patient Success After Discharge
HBNS STORY | April 26, 2011
When nurse staffing levels are higher on hospital units, patients tend do to better after discharge, as long as overtime isn’t involved.

Guest Blog: One More Reason Patients Ask Doctors So Few Questions
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | March 31, 2011 | Stephen Wilkins
The most popular post on my blog is entitled Five Reasons Why People Do Not Ask Their Doctor Questions. Well it seems there is a sixth reason. The Reason? Patients were never supposed to ask doctors questions.

The "True Grit"-tiness of Sharing Health Care Decisions with Our Doctors
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | March 23, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
In the recent Coen brothers' remake of the 1969 movie True Grit, Mattie Ross, an intrepid 14-year-old, is determined to hunt down and kill the man who murdered her father. To accomplish this, she hires U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn, (played by a mumbling Jeff Bridges) a rough, one-eyed veteran of many such quests ' then announces that she plans to come along. She figures she is prepared.

Guest Blog: Defining Patient Engagement
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 18, 2011 | Donna Cryer
The mad scramble to figure out how to 'engage' patients in their healthcare has begun! Everyone from PR firms to hospital board members are trying to figure out how to engage patients in their health care. My question to hospitals and others is this: Why would you reject the help of thousands of individuals positioned in various ways to help you be more successful?

A Valentine to Shared Decision Making
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 14, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
Shared decision making is hot right now. Research. Surveys. Tools. Training. Conferences. Policies. The current model of shared decision making consists of providing patients with evidence that allows them to compare the risks and side effects of different treatments or preventive services when more than one option is available. After studying the evidence, the theory goes, patients discuss it with their physician, weigh their personal preferences and together the two agree upon a course of action.

One Small Step for Patient-Centered Care, One Less Barrier to Engagement
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 1, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
As far as my chemo nurse Olga* is concerned, I can do nothing right. She scolded me for sending an e-mail when she thought I should have called and vice versa. She scolded me for going home before my next appointment was scheduled. She scolded me for asking to speak to her personally instead of whichever nurse was available. She scolded me for calling my oncologist directly. She scolded me for asking whether my clinical information and questions are shared between my oncologist and the staff of the chemo suite. I could go on'

Getting Through the Shock of a Devastating Diagnosis
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | January 25, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
It could happen tomorrow. The doctor says, "I'm sorry, I have bad news," and suddenly your life is turned upside-down, leaving you reeling from the shock of a potentially life-threatening diagnosis. Here is some advice on getting through that initial period.

Dicker With Your Doc? Not So Fast'
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | January 20, 2011 | Jessie Gruman
'How to Haggle With Your Doctor' was the title of a recent Business section column in The New York Times. This is one of many similar directives to the public in magazines, TV and Websites urging us to lower the high price of our health care by going mano a mano with our physicians about the price of tests they recommend and the drugs they prescribe. Such articles provide simple, commonsense recommendations about how to respond to the urgency many of us feel ' insured or uninsured ' to reduce our health care expenses.

Prepared Patient: The Handoff: Your Roadmap to a New Doctors Care
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | December 29, 2010 | Health Behavior News Service
It could be a broken wrist, or a life-altering battle with cancer, but sooner or later most patients run up against the diagnosis that sends them from their primary care doctor's care into the hands of a new physician. In medical circles, this transition is called the "handoff" a casual name that conceals the complications and risks of this journey.

Prepared Patient: Taking Charge of Your Health Records
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | December 27, 2010 | Health Behavior News Service
File folders, marching across the shelves in an orderly line behind the receptionist's desk, may be the first thing you see when you sign in for a doctor's appointment. While it's tempting to believe that your personal health history is neatly contained within one of those folders, the truth is far more troubling.

Prepared Patient: Effective Patienthood Begins With Good Communication
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | December 24, 2010 | Health Behavior News Service
Given all the obstacles that prevent us from getting to the doctor's office scheduling an appointment, digging out the insurance card and plain old procrastination it is good health sense to make the most of your time when you are finally face-to-face with your health care provider.

GoodBehavior!: Evidence That Engagement Does Make a Difference
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 15, 2010 | Jessie Gruman
There is tremendous intuitive appeal in the idea that people must be engaged in their health care to benefit from it. To date, however, there has been little direct evidence to support the claim that our engagement affects health outcomes.

Gale Fisher's Missed Diagnosis (Almost)
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 8, 2010 | Andrew Schorr
As Gale Fisher approached her late 60's, she remained active - playing golf and walking, but pain in her right calf made walking difficult, and it was getting worse. Gale eventually saw her doctor who suggested fusion surgery. Gale sought a second opinion from a vascular surgeon. He proposed a major surgery that would require 10 days in the hospital to open the blood flow. Gale sought out third opinion. The information she received changed her life.

Hospital Discharge Without a Net
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 3, 2010 | Jessie Gruman
By the time I reached the sixth day of my hospitalization for stomach cancer surgery, I was antsy to go home and I quizzed each nurse and physician who came into my room about what must happen for me to be liberated the following day. Their responses were consistent: my surgeon would visit in the morning and write orders for my release. Then I would have a comprehensive discussion with my nurse about my discharge plan, after which I could leave.

Patient Engagement on the Med-Surg Floor
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 2, 2010 | Jessie Gruman
Three times a day, as though responding to some signal audible only to the generously medicated, we rise from our beds to join the slow procession around the perimeter of the unit. Like slumped, disheveled royalty, each of us blearily leads our retinue of anxious loved ones who push our IV poles, bear sweaters to ward off the harsh air conditioning and hover to prevent stumbles. Some make eye contact. Few talk. Each of us is absorbed in our suffering and our longing to return to our bed.

Learning About Public Participation
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 29, 2010 | Connie Davis
I've been spending time lately becoming more familiar with methods of public participation and the evidence behind participation. When I first moved to British Columbia, the government was sponsoring 'Conversations on Health' which I initially found exciting and innovative. That effort was designed to give the public a voice about health care in the province. I sent in my comments via the website and read about the public meetings being held throughout the province. I became a skeptic when I compared the data and original reports from the conversations and the conclusions. They didn't seem to match.

More Seniors Get Flu Shot After Personalized Reminders, Provider Urging
HBNS STORY | September 7, 2010

New Solid Evidence Showing the Impact of Physician Communication on Our Engagement in Care
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | August 19, 2010 | Jessie Gruman
Ask us if we are more likely to use a medication as directed if our doctors explain why a specific drug might be helpful, how to take it so that it is most effective and what its possible side effects are and then discuss whether we think we are willing and able to take it.

Patient-centered Care Can Lower Risk of Death in Heart Attack
HBNS STORY | July 22, 2010

Surgery Is Good Teachable Moment to Help Smokers Quit
HBNS STORY | July 6, 2010

Getting to the Right Doctor at the Right Time
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | June 3, 2010 | Jessie Gruman
One of the behaviors necessary to be a prepared patient is to seek and use the appropriate health care setting when professional attention is required.

Participate in My Care? Room for Improvement
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | May 20, 2010 | Jessie Gruman
The Center for Advancing Health, just released A Snapshot of People's Engagement in Their Health Care, a study that found that most of us do relatively little to participate in our health care.

Getting Test Results
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 27, 2010 | Dorothy Jeffress
Over the years, I've filled out plenty of forms at doctors' offices, but this was a new one for me.

Self-Monitoring Lowers Risks for Patients on Anti-Clotting Drug
HBNS STORY | April 13, 2010

Surprised I was So Unprepared
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 2, 2010 | Jessie Gruman
As the first blogger on this site, I write first as a person who has been diagnosed with three different types of cancer and a serious heart condition -- and as one who manages the long-term effects of that many diagnoses and that much treatment on a daily basis.

Welcome to the "What it Takes'' Blog!
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | April 1, 2010 | Jessie Gruman
This posting marks the initial gathering of a virtual community of individuals who recognize that each of us must participate knowledgeably and actively in finding and using health care if we are to benefit from it.