Comments on: Empowered Patients = ePatients

By: Rachel

Rachel — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:18:31 +0000

Katherine, thanks for sharing your experience here.

(And, as a side note, the medical librarians I work with help provide the links to condition info in MHAV, so I’m personally glad they have been useful to you!)

By: Katherine Coble

Katherine Coble — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:08:44 +0000

As a patient with chronic illness, I cannot fully express how much my partnership with my various specialists is helping me through this journey. I’ve been fortunate enough to be paired with a health provider who grants access to physicians via email, web access to medical records including test results and vitals, and most importantly, access to information about my condition. The very day my diagnosis was confirmed I was able to log onto the My Health At Vanderbilt page and read about the conditions I had. That information has helped me manage my difficult situation with a lot less expense and aggravation.

I know there are still doctors out there who would like to retain the distance and mystique afforded physicians for much of the last century. Unfortunately, the side effects of that distance often included ill-informed patients who suffered needlessly.

By: Rachel

Rachel — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:27:29 +0000

Thanks, Dave!

By: e-Patient Dave

e-Patient Dave — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 02:30:50 +0000

Words can barely express how thrilled I am that our communities have found each other.

I was a recent graduate when OBOS first roared onto the scene. I well remember the commotion about uppity women being taught all that explicit stuff about how their innards work.

As the e-patient movement grew this year into the Society, I’ve said we need to teach people about precedents – that this isn’t new. The two things I’ve always cited were Benjamin Spock’s “Trust yourself. You know more than you think you do” and OBOS.

It is SUCH a pleasure to meet you, and I’m so glad Amy Romano made the connection.