22.05.14
Pilot scheme to help GPs tackle long-term conditions
NHS England is to trial a new pilot scheme aimed at helping GPs assess the care and support needs of patients with long-term conditions.
Known as patient activation, the assessment tool has been designed to help GPs put people with long-term conditions at the centre of the care and support they receive.
For instance, it measures the knowledge, skills and confidence these patients have to manage their own health, and highlights where they need extra support.
The pilot, which will be evaluated by The Health Foundation, will cover 150,000 people and has been launched by The King’s Fund, The Health Foundation, five clinical commissioning groups and The Renal Registry.
Dr Martin McShane, NHS England’s director for Long-Term Conditions, said: “I wish I had known about patient activation thirty years ago; I’m very excited about its potential to improve peoples’ lives.
“It’s about understanding that when talking to patients that there are two experts in the room – one with individual experience, the other with medical expertise. This pilot will bring together the best of both, putting patients at the heart of their consultation.”
The launch follows the publication of a recent report from The King’s Fund, ‘Supporting people to manage their own health: an introduction to patient activation’, which introduces the concept of patient activation and its potential for application in England.
Sheffield general practitioner Dr Ollie Hart said: “I am a big supporter of the value of considering patient activation in clinical care. Patient activation is about a paradigm shift in how we as patients and clinicians interact and work together to get the best possible outcomes. Working like this means I can better understand where patients with long-term conditions are coming from and match my interventions to their needs.”
The Health Foundation added that the higher a person’s activation – their knowledge, skills and confidence – the better they are at managing their long-term conditions, resulting in better health outcomes.
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