Information Therapy and the Empowered PatientDr Malpani, MDFounderHELP – Health Education Library for People

Patients are unhappy with the medical profession•Seen to be uncaring•Money-minded•Doctors are too busy to talk or to explain•Overtesting•Overtreatment•Too expensive•Move to alternative medicine

•Long for the family doctor of the past…

Doctor versus Patient►Indian patients are becoming

increasingly articulate – they want more information about their medical conditions

►Unfortunately their doctors do not have the time to provide them this information in detail

Results ?

•Doctor –shopping•Doctors get beaten up and arrested•Hospitals get burnt down•Doctors go on strike

•Everyone suffers !

Doctor and Patient

•We are all on the same side – the patients’ •Medicine is a service profession•Doctors like helping patients•Want them to get better

•How can we create a win-win situation ?

Information Therapy !

•Information Therapy is Powerful Medicine !

•Help patients to make better health decisions

•Patients are the largest untapped healthcare resource !

•Empower them with information – so they can take better care of themselves , in partnership with their doctor.

Don’t underestimate your abilities !•1. You are smart . With the right tools,

you can make the right decisions !•2. Knowledge is Power !•3. Your doctor is your partner •4. You cannot afford to leave everything

upto God – or upto the doctor !

HELP helps you save money on medical care •1. Promote SelfCare . Help you to do as

much for yourself as you can, so you are not completely dependent on the doctor

•2. Provide Evidence-Based Guidelines , so you can ask for the right medical treatment that they need - no more and no less

•3. Help you with Veto Power, so you can say No to medical care you don’t need, thus preventing overtesting and unnecessary surgery .

We help doctors to talk to patients !•Improve doctor patient communication•Help doctors to look at things from the

patient’s point of view !•Improve empathy and their bedside

manner•Help them to get more patients !•Help them to reduce risk of lawsuits

My personal experience

•I learn a lot from my patients !•If you treat patients with respect, they

will respect you in return•Patients get the doctors they deserve –

and doctors get the patients they deserve•Well-informed patients are easier to treat,

because they have realistic expectations

We help patients to talk to doctors !•Demystify jargon•Remove the fear•Provide them with the tools they need •Help patients to make sense of what is

happening to them•The quality of your doctor’s answers

depend upon the quality of your questions !

How do you find this information ?

•Google is great !•24/7•Free•Great for quick and dirty searches•Instant access from home

But –Internet searches can be frustrating•Get lost•Information can be unreliable•Confusing•Conflicting information•Not updated•Whom do you trust ?

•Need handholding – especially in an area like medicine !

Internet positive patients

•Frustrated•Confused

•Frustrate doctors as well

Google and libraries

•It’s NOT google v/s libraries•People who use google are the ones who

will use libraries !•They ask questions. They trust – then

verify !•Check and re-check – due diligence•Knowledge is power !•Click and mortar complementary

approach - use both !

•Perfect for people who’ve already done a google search; and then need help

•Librarians – human infomediaries•Librarian-mediated search•Provide hand-holding•Guides – online and the real-world !

What we provide

•Easy to read materials – for patients and by patients

•Wide variety of styles – from single page pamphlet to books

•Comprehensive – from stress management, exercise, diet, all illnesses, alternative medicine

•Over 300 DVDs

Brief history

•Established in 1997 •Mission - to empower people by providing

them with  the  information they  need to promote their health , and prevent and treat   medical problems in the family in partnership with their doctor.

•We are a registered charitable trust and a non-profit organisation.

HELP Talks

•Free talks daily•Doctors, alternative medicines experts

and by patients ( Expert Patient)•Partnership with Times of India

Foundation•Wide range of topics•Longest running series of health talks

( Limca Book of Records) , ongoing since 3 years

Outreach activities

•Courier information ( fee charged)•Email information – free value-add service•Health ezine for corporates

Services for doctors

•MDConsult ( World’s largest online medical library) subscriptions as reduced prices

Our focus areas now are:

•1. encouraging health insurance companies to invest in patient education

•2. advocating information therapy•3. setting up a national network of patient

education centers•4. developing patient educational

materials in Indian languages for the web

HELP is growing ! National Network•Every hospital should have a Patient

Education Resource Center•Win-win situation•Great tool to empower patients•Helps doctors and hospitals too !

New locations

•Mini-libraries in pharmacies•Mini-libraries in medical laboratories•Mini-libraries in clinics

How do we grow ?Corporate Partners•Win win !•CSR•80G benefits•Health insurance companies are the best

fit - dollar spent on patient education is 10 dollars saved ( on unnecessary testing and surgery)

Why libraries will always be useful !•Data v/s Information v/s Knowledge

v/s Wisdom

•Libraries and librarians help transmute information into knowledge