eHealth - Social Business in Health

In an opinion piece published online in Medical Economics, part of the Modern Medicine Network, Henry Anhalt, DO discusses the current status of Precision Medicine as 2016 draws to a close. Reflecting on President Obama’s 2015 State of the Union address, in which he launched the Precision Medicine initiative – a program that aims to revolutionize health outcomes by taking a personalized approach to medicine and research – he acknowledges the ongoing debate as to whether this approach to treating disease can truly deliver on its promises. He also recognizes the uncertainty for precision medicine that lies ahead as the US enters a new presidential term.
One of the solutions Anhalt proposes is for clinicians to ask themselves how they can implement the tenets of precision medicine when treating patients in the immediate present. His suggested answers to this question included enabling patients to access their own health record data: “So they can review it when they need to and share it with others when they want”. He then discussed The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ push for patient access to health records through its pioneering “Blue Button” initiative and how it is a step in the right direction towards this goal.
Another suggestion involves how the community engages study participants in research, as: “There are many ways patients today can participate in research without requiring a visit to a large research hospital.” Anhalt continues, “For example, if patients can download their health records, one easy opportunity they may have is to donate them to research. For people with Type 1 diabetes, we offer a patient platform that allows that patient to connect with others who have Type 1 diabetes and participate in online research. To truly achieve the promise of precision medicine, it’s going to require that our patients have the understanding and motivation to become citizen scientists.”
He concluded with advice for clinicians that even if today they cannot practice precision medicine in full, they should at least strive for individualized care. “As physicians, we are trained to ask questions such as, ‘What are your symptoms; how long have you had these symptoms?’ and so forth. But what are the questions we’re not asking that help us get a more holistic view of a patient’s health?” He argues that greater empathy in clinical interactions could help achieved more personalized care in the present.
Finally, Anhalt points out that, despite the wealth of precision medicine research is being done, there is a long way to go until it can be fully and successfully integrated into healthcare systems nationwide. “We’ve just scratched the surface with the Precision Medicine Initiative, and it will be interesting to see what takes place in 2017 and beyond as we focus more on patient outcomes.”