Healthy Living Personal Wellness Profiler™: Business Office 2

In my concluding post, I introduced our Personal Health Profiler™ (PHPro™) software application, a personal wellness knowledge organisation giving self-help (problem-solving) guidance too decision-support. I discussed how the PHPro offers a model of where personal wellness records (PHRs) ought to endure heading.

Before I delve to a greater extent than into the particulars of the healthcare consumer too provider versions of our PHPro, I'd similar to clarify a chief premise I'm making: An abundance of relevant, personalized information well-nigh your physical, mental, too mind-body wellness problems too risks gives you lot greater agreement of how best to bargain with them.

This may audio logical—the to a greater extent than you lot series of 3 posts well-nigh information overload too how to avoid it, accumulating massive amounts of wellness information over a person's lifetime demand non campaign overload if nosotros deliver it inwards reports that salvage fourth dimension too cut back confusion by:

• Filtering out irrelevant information, too so a individual stays focused on what's important
• "Serving up" the information equally needed, rather than requiring a individual to search for it
• Personalizing the presentation, too so that the information is tailored to a person's preferences (i.e., it is presented inwards a personalized mode to minimize confusion, increase clarity, too maximize ease-of-use)
• Organizing too summarizing the information inwards a way that enables people to examine the information from dissimilar perspectives, equally good equally to "drill down" from the full general to the underlying details
• Tailoring instruction (education materials) to a person's mightiness to larn too exceptional information needs.

The PHPro incorporates all these capabilities.

Nevertheless, this soundless begs the question: Why produce nosotros demand too so much data? After all, at that spot are wellness assessment instruments that enquire equally few equally 5 or 6 questions (EQ-5D too SF-6D), behavioral wellness instruments that receive got equally few equally 24 or 32 questions (BASIS-24 too 32), too personal wellness records (including information storage spider web sites) that are express to bespeak a few dozen questions too runway a dozen roughly types of information (i.e., a person's vital signs, diagnoses, medications, basic lab results, handling procedures, allergies, inoculations, diet, sleep, activity levels, stress/mood too emergency contact information).

The PHPro, on the other hand, contains thousands of questions (using sophisticated branching logic, too so exclusively the questions pertinent to a individual are asked), too manages hundreds of dissimilar information types (not to advert adding conclusion back upwards too self-help tools). But why bother beingness too so comprehensive? Isn't it truthful that "less is more?"

Having written extensively well-nigh this number here and here, allow me know tell that when it comes to healthcare, the adage "more is less" non exclusively doesn't apply, but less knowledge is dangerous! Healthcare providers too consumers oftentimes lack the knowledge needed for making consistently good, well-informed decisions. In fact, a knowledge gap is a primal argue nosotros receive got a healthcare crisis, too why consumers rarely acquire high-value care. That's because amend health-related decisions come upwards from having "deeper" (more complete) agreement of a person's body, mind, spirituality, too environment, which tin exclusively come upwards from having an abundance of relevant knowledge. Why? Because the accuracy too dependability of your understandings depend straight on how much you lot know well-nigh a broad variety of of import things.

So, when it comes to making decisions well-nigh preventing, diagnosing, self-managing, too treating wellness problems, to a greater extent than consummate knowledge results inwards amend decisions too outcomes.

For example, exclusively subsequently analyzing a considerable amount too multifariousness of information tin nosotros gain the knowledge nosotros demand to all the following:

• Determine relationships betwixt the medications a individual is taking too how their side-effects (or drug-drug interactions) may endure causing or exacerbating the person's symptoms too abnormal lab examine results
• Determine relationships betwixt a person's medical conditions, stress levels, diet, metabolic functioning, too environmental influences, too the person's symptoms too abnormal lab examine results
• Predict if one's wellness is improving or beingness maintained, or if lead a opportunity factors are probable to acquire illnesses due to aging or deteriorating health
• Discover what types of treatments too preventive interventions piece of job best for exceptional types of individuals with exceptional wellness conditions.

And when it comes to diagnosing complex or multifaceted medical conditions, too problems with a psychological component, a substantial amount of information is also oftentimes necessary. For example, it is of import to assess the nature, severity, too etiology (causes) of the depressive symptoms inwards lite of a person's electrical current life-events, yesteryear experiences, too personal demographics. This way using a vast information puddle that measures such things as:

• The intensity, frequency, duration, too cyclical fourth dimension occurrences of the depression
• The etiology of the depression, including identify unit of measurement history, electrical current psychosocial too biomedical problems, medication side-effects, too psychoactive centre abuse
• The nature too flat of dysfunctional knowledge associated with the depression such equally thoughts of helplessness, hopelessness, suicidal ideation, self-deprecation, too existential/spiritual dilemmas, equally good equally cognitive slowing, rigidity, too focusing problems
• The nature too flat of concomitant (co-occurring) physiological symptoms such equally languor versus agitation, changes inwards sleeping too eating patterns, too physical complaints
• The nature too flat of behavioral disruptions such equally social alienation versus clinging dependence, too trace of piece of job or didactics dysfunction
• The nature too flat of coexisting emotional problems such equally anger toward self, anxiety, guilt, too shame
• Demographics, such equally age, sex, ethnicity, too socioeconomic status.

Even wellness status too lead a opportunity appraisals used yesteryear wellness coaches oftentimes require extensive information for establishing, implementing, too evaluating well-care plans. This information puddle includes such things equally a person's:

• Background information (demographics)
• Health exams too interventions
• General wellness status
• Attitudes well-nigh health
• Symptoms
• Existing wellness problems/conditions
• Biometrics (weight, blood pressure, cholesterol levels, vital signs)
• Health lead a opportunity factors
• Psychological/emotional character of life
• Distressing life events
• Personal achievement & success, personal mightiness & influence
• Self-esteem, self-competence & confidence
• Life purpose & pregnant , goodness of life. life satisfaction
• Interest, involvement, too enjoyment of your daily activities
• Stress too trauma
• Work-related issues
• Caregiver responsibilities
• Social relationships
• Emotional state, mood
• Coping strategies
• Physical activity & exercise
• Nutrition
• Sleep
• Energy levels
• Wellness coaching preferences
• Areas to address with coach.

Here, too, the PHPro manages all this information, too much more.

Up to this point, I've been focused on the importance of comprehensive knowledge to an individual's health & character of life. This issue, however, extends to the character of our entire healthcare system. Here, for example, is a link to an explanation of Sir Muir Gray, Chief Knowledge Office of Britain's National Health Services, well-nigh how the lack of adequate healthcare knowledge is preventing us from solving the next "magnificent 8″ problems:

• Errors too mistakes
• Poor character healthcare
• Waste
• Unknowing variations inwards policy & practice
• Poor patient experience
• Overenthusiastic adoption of interventions of depression value
• Failure to acquire novel bear witness into practice
• Failure to grapple uncertainty.

He continues:

[We are currently inwards a] 3rd industrial (and therefore, healthcare) revolution [that] is driven yesteryear citizens, information technology too knowledge. Professionals are yesteryear too large 2 decades off the zeitgeist too this is non restricted to healthcare, it's seen across all professions.

Knowledge is the enemy of disease, the application of what nosotros know volition receive got a bigger acquit upon than whatever drug or technology probable to endure introduced inwards the side yesteryear side decade. I'm talking well-nigh 3 types of knowledge hither Statistics, Evidence too Mistakes [italics added] nosotros demand to endure able to deliver these equally only too abundantly equally nosotros deliver construct clean water… What we're introducing inwards NHS bodies is a Chief Knowledge Officer--because you lot demand liberate energy to brand knowledge seem everywhere….We should endure thinking systems rather than structures, recognizing the network that runs with every bureaucracy is responsible for innovation.

While I would fence that his 3 types of knowledge don't comprehend all bases, I fully concur that nosotros demand to produce a much amend undertaking inwards generating, sharing, too using a keen multifariousness of knowledge focused on fixing our healthcare organisation too improving outcomes all each patients/consumers.

While electrical current 24-hour interval personal wellness records produce little, if anything, to address these global, systemic problems, the PHPro is designed to produce back upwards the sort of enquiry that generates the knowledge needed to solve the magnificent 8 problems.

So, the vision I'm espousing—which focuses on improving people's wellness too wellbeing through the development, sharing too usage of wide-ranging knowledge—spans from the private patient/consumer, sick-care provider too wellness coach to the entire healthcare system. My sincere wishing to assistance plow this vision into a reality has kept me motivated for over 25 years inwards evolving the PHPro.

Click here for the concluding transportation service inwards this series.

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