Tag Archive for: self-advocacy groups

Dr. Abdulraheem Yacoub: Why Is It Important for You to Empower Patients?

Why is it important to empower patients? Expert Dr. Abdulraheem Yacoub from the University of Kansas Medical Center discusses his approaches to patient empowerment and the positive impacts that empowered patients benefit from. 

See More from Empowering Providers to Empower Patients (EPEP)

Related Resources:

Dr. Andres Chang: Why Is It Important for You to Empower Patients?

Dr. Andres Chang: Why Is It Important for You to Empower Patients?

Dr. Daniel Ermann: Why Is It Important for You to Empower Patients?

Dr. Jennifer Brown: Why Is It Important for You to Empower Patients?

Dr. Jennifer Brown: Why Is It Important for You to Empower Patients?

Transcript:

Dr. Abdulraheem Yacoub:

Your ability to provide the best care for your patients really takes a team, takes a village. It involves the physician, the nurses, and the pharmacists but visually also patient and caregiver involvement. The more my patients are informed, the more their caregivers are involved. The more resources come up for these patients, the more their decisions are being made with the more depth and considerations and usually leads to more productive and effective healthcare provision for these patients. I believe that patients being educated in about their disease about what they’re up against to be given a realistic prognosis and expectation is of great value. 

I think arranging for patients to attend patient symposiums to reach out for educational material to be encouraged to seek out second opinions or to enroll in self-advocacy groups is of great importance and of greatest value for these patients. Patients with MPNs will live with their diseases for the rest of their lives, and that might include through the careers of multiple oncologists. So as patients live with their disease long, they need to master the knowledge base for MPN and for the understanding of their disease as they carry the journey with their MPNs for their natural lives and until a journey to cure or control their disease. I certainly believe in that, and I believe it’s the mission for all doctors to promote patient empowerment and patient education and involvement in their care.