Jessie Gruman, PhD

Authorities overestimate patients’ health literacy

July 18, 2014Jul 18, 20143

I'm impressed by how much we struggle with seemingly simple health decisions when faced with sorting through too much information. Buying sunscreen: It's a simple task, right? Most of us do it every year about this time. And among actions…

I’m impressed by how much we struggle with seemingly simple health decisions when faced with sorting through too much information.

Buying sunscreen: It’s a simple task, right? Most of us do it every year about this time. And among actions we can take to reduce our risk of cancer in general and skin cancer specifically, this choice is fairly important.

So my colleague was surprised to hear this snippet of conversation as she contemplated …

The effort it takes to become an engaged patient

July 9, 2014Jul 9, 201414

Heard these? Good news! We can eat butter again! Walking just as good as running for your health Meditation improves mental and physical health A second language sustains brain power Regularly sleeping too long may indicate a health problem Media-fueled…

Heard these?

Media-fueled flip-flops and research breakthroughs on lifestyle and health behaviors are wearing down my usual patience with …

How entitlement undermines patient engagement

June 23, 2014Jun 23, 201444

I know the ropes at the VA ... I'll pick up the phone in a heartbeat and call my senator and get what I need right away. A lot of guys aren't like that. –Max Gruzen, PTSD patient, Vietnam veteran…

I know the ropes at the VA … I’ll pick up the phone in a heartbeat and call my senator and get what I need right away. A lot of guys aren’t like that.
–Max Gruzen, PTSD patient, Vietnam veteran from the New York Times

So this is what it means to be an “engaged” patient in the VA system today. You have to know a senator who will intervene …

Balancing individual care with systemic health fixes

May 23, 2014May 23, 2014

"All patients are alike. This one complains about the same things that the last one did." "Every patient is unique. We can never find a way to make each one of them happy." Remember that 1980s public health paradox: Do…

“All patients are alike. This one complains about the same things that the last one did.”

“Every patient is unique. We can never find a way to make each one of them happy.”

Remember that 1980s public health paradox: Do you focus on intensive interventions that might produce significant improvements in outcomes for a defined, high-risk group or do you direct energy to system-level changes that may achieve more …

What does dignity mean to patients?

May 16, 2014May 16, 20143

Remember in second grade when you realized that you could say the word "giraffe" 25 times and it would lose its meaning, shed the image of that gawky creature and turn into a little pile of meaningless sound? You know,…

Remember in second grade when you realized that you could say the word “giraffe” 25 times and it would lose its meaning, shed the image of that gawky creature and turn into a little pile of meaningless sound? You know, when you had your first insight into the wonders of language?

I was reminded of this experience when, at a conference about patient engagement in health care, the word “dignity” was …

What does dignity mean to patients?

Are the benefits of price transparency overstated?

April 17, 2014Apr 17, 201422

I heard this on the radio recently: Mom takes her new baby to the emergency department on a weekend because she thinks her daughter might have a urinary tract infection. She's right, but regulations say the baby has to stay…

I heard this on the radio recently: Mom takes her new baby to the emergency department on a weekend because she thinks her daughter might have a urinary tract infection. She’s right, but regulations say the baby has to stay in the hospital for two days to ensure the infection clears. Afterwards, the mom is surprised by and concerned about a $7,000 hospital bill for the baby’s care.

The …

Doctors often overestimate the knowledge of patients

March 20, 2014Mar 20, 201419

There's a pesky cognitive bias that creates a honking big barrier to patients and families making the most of the health advice and services available to us. It's the tendency of experts to overestimate the knowledge of others. One consequence…

There’s a pesky cognitive bias that creates a honking big barrier to patients and families making the most of the health advice and services available to us. It’s the tendency of experts to overestimate the knowledge of others.

One consequence of expertise — or even just easy familiarity with a topic or institution or practice — is the inability to remember not knowing what you now know. Think back to your …

Chronic conditions don’t have normal business hours

February 27, 2014Feb 27, 20142

It looks like an airport lounge without the rolling suitcases. There are about 20 of us cancer survivor-types fiddling with our phones or reading the newspaper. A few of us are sipping delicious contrast fluid in preparation for a scan, but most of us are waiting to meet with our oncologists for follow-up or monitoring visits. All of us are between the ages of 20 and 70 and all of …

Do patients value their health information privacy?

February 20, 2014Feb 20, 20143

Do I value the privacy of my health information? What do you mean? That if I email my doctor about an embarrassing symptom, only my doctor will read it? That only my doctor, my nurse and I have access to…

Do I value the privacy of my health information? What do you mean?

That if I email my doctor about an embarrassing symptom, only my doctor will read it?

That only my doctor, my nurse and I have access to the information in my electronic medical record, including notes on our confidential conversations, prescriptions and test results?

That my local drug store doesn’t sell information about me to pharmaceutical companies?

That …

Patients need to take an active role in their medications

January 23, 2014Jan 23, 2014

Overheard in the gym: "Yeah, but I heard that ____ can be dangerous." "Oh, they wouldn't let us buy it if it was." Lately, the public's faith in the safety of prescription and over-the-counter drugs has been making me uneasy.…

Overheard in the gym:

“Yeah, but I heard that ____ can be dangerous.”

“Oh, they wouldn’t let us buy it if it was.”

Lately, the public’s faith in the safety of prescription and over-the-counter drugs has been making me uneasy. Advances in drug development mean that many of us truly can live better lives through their wise use. But are we adequately guided and protected by a) regulators, b) our clinicians, c) a …

Is a single patient representative in a group sufficient?

January 7, 2014Jan 7, 20142

What can we learn from an experiment conducted on a single person? That is, when the subject population (N) is a single person, aka N=1? How and how much do such findings contribute to knowledge about the experimental intervention? How relevant are results to other patients or populations or diseases? In assessing what is known about a phenomenon, how are these findings treated in comparison to studies with 30 or …

Why patients should not be captains of their health care teams

December 31, 2013Dec 31, 201313

You may have noticed an uptick in messages from your health plan or clinician notifying you that "You are the captain of your health care team." I have seen them here and here and here and here, for example. My…

You may have noticed an uptick in messages from your health plan or clinician notifying you that “You are the captain of your health care team.” I have seen them here and here and here and here, for example.

My response to this message? Bad metaphor: I am not the captain of my health care team.

I may — on some days — consider myself a member of that team, should I actually …

Valuing patient and family input in health care

December 18, 2013Dec 18, 2013

Current efforts of clinicians, hospitals and researchers to make health care more "patient-centered" include inviting some of us to advise on research priorities, care organization and delivery under the assumption that, as patients, we understand what patient-centered outcomes and care…

Current efforts of clinicians, hospitals and researchers to make health care more “patient-centered” include inviting some of us to advise on research priorities, care organization and delivery under the assumption that, as patients, we understand what patient-centered outcomes and care are. These invitations and our acceptance of them often result in confusion and disappointment for everyone, regardless of good intentions. What do patients know about the inner workings of …

Incorporating patient preferences into evidence based medicine

November 21, 2013Nov 21, 20135

Remember the figure-ground drawing from psychology 101 that demonstrates (ahem) "how edge assignment designates perceptual groupings?" I always just thought it was cool how you could look at the picture of a vase and blink and -- whoa, Nellie --…

Remember the figure-ground drawing from psychology 101 that demonstrates (ahem) “how edge assignment designates perceptual groupings?” I always just thought it was cool how you could look at the picture of a vase and blink and — whoa, Nellie — now you saw two people face-to-face.

I’m concerned that the frantic drive toward evidence-based medicine as a strategy for quality improvement and …

The chronically ill are those who need online services the most

November 14, 2013Nov 14, 20132

Outsourcing work to cheaper workers is a common strategy of corporations. It has largely escaped the public's notice, however, that much of this new labor force isn't located in Southeast Asia, but is rather found here in the U.S. and…

Outsourcing work to cheaper workers is a common strategy of corporations. It has largely escaped the public’s notice, however, that much of this new labor force isn’t located in Southeast Asia, but is rather found here in the U.S. and is virtually free. It is we, using our laptops and smartphones to perform tasks once carried out by knowledgeable salespeople and service representatives.

This was particularly salient to me this week: …

Is the time right for e-caregiving?

November 7, 2013Nov 7, 2013

Recently, both my husband and I came away from a conversation with my doctor positive that we understood my new weight gain plan. Funny thing: Each of us recalled a different plan. I am always struck by how our memories of the words spoken by my doctor can be so dissimilar. No, not all of them, but enough of them to be wary of going to any appointment without a …

Is the time right for e-caregiving?

How choice can drive patient engagement

October 30, 2013Oct 30, 20134

One of my doctors always asks if he can examine me before he starts. He identifies each body part he is going to touch as a question. I feel like I can always say, "No ear exam today, thank you."…

One of my doctors always asks if he can examine me before he starts. He identifies each body part he is going to touch as a question. I feel like I can always say, “No ear exam today, thank you.” Or alternately, “I’ve been having a little pain in my left ear. Can you check it?”

Tiny point. Subtle. But by merely asking me, my doctor signals that I am not …

How choice can drive patient engagement

Finding out the price of health care should be a realistic expectation

October 23, 2013Oct 23, 20137

"Health care costs are sky-rocketing!" "The percentage of the U.S. GDP devoted to heath care costs is the highest in the world." "The cost of Medicare is unsustainable." For most of us, the cost of health care (i.e., the dollars…

“Health care costs are sky-rocketing!” “The percentage of the U.S. GDP devoted to heath care costs is the highest in the world.” “The cost of Medicare is unsustainable.”

For most of us, the cost of health care (i.e., the dollars required by the system to produce and deliver care) isn’t what brings us the most anxiety.

It’s when we’re patients or helping a loved one find care that so many of us are deeply …

The image of illness in the media

October 17, 2013Oct 17, 20134

Have you noticed that most sick characters on TV shows look pretty good and are coherent -- often feisty -- even when they are in the hospital? Have you caught the number of ads for drugs and health plans showing…

Have you noticed that most sick characters on TV shows look pretty good and are coherent — often feisty — even when they are in the hospital?

Have you caught the number of ads for drugs and health plans showing happy, vigorous people that dominate the major consumer health websites and are common on TV?

Have you noted that websites of disease voluntary organizations (lung, cancer, Crohn’s disease, arthritis) tend to show healthy people participating in “fun runs” or other …