By examining this picture, we can determine that self-care is the parent to the seven components or pillars of self-care, the first being knowledge and health literacy. Health knowledge is not only the first pillar, but it can also be the framework that strengthens each component. Based on the figure, we can also conclude that the seven pillars of self-care ideas are separate but may rely on one another to optimally support the concept. Finalizing the idea, one pillar cannot support the building on its own, and each of the pillars of self-care needs others to function.

Health Management Knowledge Equals Health Literacy

The US Department of Health and Human Services defines health literacy as “the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information needed to make appropriate health decisions.” According to the World Health Organization, the lack of health literacy causes poorer health and has been shown to result in less healthy choices, riskier behavior, less self-care management, poorer overall health, and more frequent hospitalizations. Furthermore, a lack of health literacy significantly drains financial resources within the healthcare industry.

To offset the issues resulting in a lack of health literacy, the Patient Better program focuses on teaching everyday people how to manage care through meaningful learning, a concept where previously learned information is applied and connected to new information. Because our “students” hail from such diverse backgrounds, we begin our training at the grassroots of the healthcare industry and focus on developing the administrative skills required for everyday people to learn how to properly self-manage their care.

What Your Physician Wants You to Know

Here’s why your doctor wants you to learn about a health management program to self-manage your care.

Self-managing care keeps you healthier longer.

Advancements in healthcare have resulted in more people living with multiple common and complex conditions for longer periods. With these improvements, the need for people to self-manage their condition is now a critical driver for maintaining independence and quality of life for an extended time.

Self-managing your care improves your professional relationships.

Today, the managing care paradigm has shifted from the physician to the office staff’s shoulders to the patients. Clinicians now rely on patients to play a key role by assisting their provider as an equal partner in care (EPIC). Patients used to rely on the practice’s staff to complete several administrative tasks; however, the pandemic has shifted those responsibilities back onto the patient’s shoulders. Essentially, the need for patients and caregivers to independently manage care has never been so demanding.

Self-managing care is a promising strategy.

For various reasons, the electronic medical record constrained the provider−patient interaction in the treatment room; however, the virus crushed face-to-face communication. Today, health professionals’ need to incorporate their patient and their family-member caregivers and ramp up their participation (and capability) to render care outside the medical practice is more needed than ever.

A Word about Self-Managing Care Education

We designed our program’s tutorials, lesson applications, presentations, and workbooks in tiers, depending on the complexity of your condition, so that you (or your at-home caregiving team) can further analyze and learn how to self-manage care more easily. Being able to collect, compile, and organize your documents properly is your key to better communication. Everything that you’ll learn about self-management is portrayed in your ability to record care.

Final Thoughts

It’s crucial that patients and their families position themselves as active members in self-managing care as a team. They must always remain on top of their medical record and health story.

Patient Better is a quality health management program that does not focus on just one diagnosis. Rather, it’s a far-sighted health management program that acts as the umbrella for all illnesses, diseases, and diagnoses that one can essentially utilize throughout life. Patient Better’s quality health management program guides all people to learn the administrative duties that today coexist with common to complex medical conditions.