How patient groups benefit from having a HealthUnlocked community
By John Sawer, 16 Jan 2012
This should be an introductory paragraph to the results
Of those not already doing so, HealthUnlocked community members are more likely to...
Source: Online survey for members conducted in November 2011.
How our members benefit from being part of a HealthUnlocked community
By John Sawers, 16 Jan 2012
Last November, over 900 members gave us feedback about what they have gained from HealthUnlocked Communities. We're priviledged to be a part of their lives, having a real effect in how they feel and understand their health conditions.
Our members say that since joining a HealthUnlocked community they...
Source: Online survey for members conducted in November 2011.
Lansley launches HealthUnlocked Tracker
By Matt Jameson Evans, 12 May 2011
Matt Jameson Evans, Simon Davies, Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, Jorge Armanet
Today we started a health revolution. Ok it sounds a bit dramatic, but we have introduced a tool to get patients and doctors really working together and simultaneously. That seems worth a bit of drama. Our HealthUnlocked online outcomes system (piloted in spinal surgery at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital) lets patients record their own recovery through their treatment journey.
And it must be good because the Health Minister, Andrew Lansley, and the BBC were there to help us launch it; it's tough to get a government minister to stake their name against something delivered by an outside agency if they aren't absolutely convinced of its worth.
Over the last 20 years, administrations everywhere have sought to make patients central to the health system rather than the other way round. It's on these fundamental principles that companies like HealthUnlocked must be ready to provide the extra fillip to achieve this.
Properly monitored and supported, the HealthUnlocked Tracker tool will deliver the immediacy of results and also provide a sense of ownership for the patient: control over their own well-being. This is fundamental to creating a health service that responds to patient need. It certainly helps build up a bank of evidence to push for adaptation when required.
Our official launch saw the Secretary of State for Health meeting patients at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Central London. Seeing the system in action really brings home its potential. The great thing is that the principles that underpin it and also the design mean that we can replicate the sophisticated system easily for other surgeries or treatment outcomes.
We're also using only validated patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs). So the results should already stand up to the rigour of intelligent analysis and assessment giving surgeons and doctors the confidence to work with the system to help guide their interaction with patients.
This project brings together the expertise of healthcare professionals who have worked with patients and have been able to identify directly the gaps in service for patients. It's a great way to reflect my own experience in the NHS, working directly with patients, and capitalise on the vigour with which many healthcare experts want to use the power of the internet to change, fundamentally, the way we help patients and how the public access healthcare provision.
