Nia Zalamea, MD, FACS, General Surgeon, Church Health Center
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Learning Objectives: At the end of this activity, you will be able to:
Description: For patients suffering from chronic diseases and social disadvantage, good relationships with providers make a big difference. But health care sometimes describes such patients as “non-compliant” or “difficult.” In this video, Dr. Nia Zalamea, faculty for the IHI Open School course PFC 101: Introduction to Patient-Centered Care, explains why it’s important for providers to avoid judging patients’ health choices.
Discussion Questions:
- Can you think of an example of a time when you felt judged in the health care system, or saw a health care provider judging a patient’s choices?
- What does the term “non-compliant” mean to you? Do you think this term accurately describes some patient behavior? Why or why not?
- Dr. Zalamea talks about why it’s important for providers not to assume that they understand patients’ motivations for health decisions. Can you think of an example of when a provider’s erroneous assumption could lead to worse health outcomes?