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Not only must health care facilities meet the health educational needs of its community, but these facilities must also anticipate future needs. A meansof introducing the community to consumer health education is to make the patient and family part of the health care team, which will also contribute to cost containment. However, it is not possible to successfully motivate the health care consumer to take constructive self-responsibility in health care without first educating him. There has been much published on educating patients in order to prepare them for taking responsibility for their own health care. The following is an example of how our community needs are being met and anticipated at Saratoga General Hospital in Detroit, Michigan.
In May 1975, the hospital's most recent education program designed to meet patient/ consumer needs was implemented. A list of steps that were taken to accomplish this include:
- needs analysis,
- administrative approval,
- translating needs into objectives,
- designing the program to meet the objectives,
- gaining support,
- implementation of the program, and
- reassessing needs through evaluation.
NEEDS ANALYSIS
An assessment of where the greatest need for patient education at Saratoga Hospital had tobe made. First, it was necessary, to know the patient population. In reviewing the professional activities study with the department of medical records, the statistics showed that 6.44 percent of all hospital discharges in 1974 had either a primary or secondary diagnosis of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). The 1975 statistics showed a measurable increase over that of 1974. Factors that may contribute to COPD are smoking, air pollution, geographical location of people in industrial cities, and occupational lung disease. Thus, it seemed that in the future a larger percentage of the population could be expected to have COPD.
ADMINISTRATIVE APPROVAL
It is advisable after a need has been identified, to have concrete data available to support any program ideas before seeking administrative approval. Have identified COPD as a future health problem, effective planning and implementation of a health care program began in the hopes of minimizing future health care cost. The administration here agreed that COPD patient education was a consumer need and gave the go-ahead for planning a patient health care program. They were briefed at intervals throughout the...