The Importance of a Strong Doctor-Patient Relationship

The importance of patient engagement and a strong doctor-patient relationship has recently become a growing topic among healthcare providers. As research on the subject has begun indicating that there may be better outcomes when a patient is actively involved in their healthcare, it has also prompted a controversial discussion on the matter as well. A growing body of evidence demonstrates that patients who are more actively involved in their healthcare experience better health outcomes and incur lower costs. As a result, many public and private healthcare organizations are employing strategies to better engage patients, such as educating them about their conditions and involving them more fully in making decisions about their care.¹

Research has been collected on the topic to verify if there are better outcomes when patients are actively involved in their healthcare. According to a study published in the journal Health Services Research, the relationship between a physician and their patient is the key to high patient engagement. After researching over 8,000 Americans with chronic illnesses, experts found that there were three factors that had a huge impact on a patient’s engagement levels. These included²:

• The quality of the patient-physician relationship—especially how well the doctor communicates in the office
• The amount of respect and fairness patients felt they received
• The frequency of patient-physician communication outside of the office (through email or phone)

The research found interesting results. Patient communication was one of the most critical elements of success: for every one unit increase in the quality of interpersonal exchanges, patients reported a 10 unit increase in their overall engagement levels.²  New Surface Sensor Technology has been designed to help foster doctor-patient communication without needing unnecessary, in-person appointments while simultaneously improving the relationship between physician and patient.

TracPatch, a two-piece device that adheres to a patient’s leg above and below the knee following total knee surgery, was created to continuously collect activity data including range of motion (ROM), exercise compliance, pain scores, PROM survey submissions, and ambulation, through a centralized patient app. The data is then sent to the cloud and shared with the patient’s healthcare provider through the healthcare provider app and web portal.

TracPatch allows healthcare providers to review a patient’s progress remotely and then send exercise reminders and make changes to individual recovery plans based on how the individual is progressing. The technology was created to help foster an enhanced doctor-patient relationship as it gives physicians the ability to monitor their patients no matter where they are located and patients the opportunity to communicate with their physician whenever necessary, without an in-person appointment. It’s reassuring to know that TracPatch has already begun helping patients take an active role in their recovery process. For more information about TracPatch contact us today.

References

1. James, J. (2013, February 14). Patient Engagement. Retrieved October 2, 2019, from https://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hpb20130214.898775/full/.
2. Boyer, L. (2018, August 15). The Importance of a Strong Doctor-Patient Relationship. Retrieved October 2, 2019, from https://www.solutionreach.com/blog/the-importance-of-a-strong-doctor-patient-relationship.