Promoting Readiness and Interest in Self Management

The researchers investigated how patient activation occurs and under what circumstances in a historically under-represented population – Black/African Americans – who suffer disproportionately high rates of chronic illness. Patient activation, or engaging patients in their care, can improve the quality of care and health outcomes for those living with chronic conditions. Specifically, the researchers: 1) evaluated psycho-social and clinical/functional determinants that influenced a change in patients’ activation levels over time; 2) examined patients’ perspectives on their involvement in their care; 3) investigated factors that may help or hinder home care nurses’ promotion of self management and patient engagement; and 4) provided recommendations to improve clinician education and patient interventions. The objective of the proposed project, funded under a special topic solicitation on consumer activation, was to promote patient-centered care by identifying and providing recommendations to overcome patient-related barriers to self-management and to cultivate facilitators of clinician involvement in promoting patient self care.