Moving from Evidence to Action: Answering the Whys and Hows of Patient Engagement

To successfully achieve a more patient- and family-centered healthcare delivery and research culture, providers and leaders throughout health care need help answering two fundamental questions:

• Why: What’s the evidence that patient engagement matters? What’s the return on investment (in terms of patient safety, experience, or dollars)?
• How: How do organizations fundamentally shift their cultures to be more person-centered? What steps can be taken today?

The team at the National Partnership for Women & Families believes that a system centered on patients and families will provide better, more efficient care and improved outcomes. Emerging findings from PCORI-funded studies are beginning to provide evidence of the multifaceted impact of patient and family engagement (PFE)—better patient-reported outcomes and identification of more patient safety errors and adverse events, for example.

Building on PCORI-funded research, NPWF will connect PFE evidence to stakeholder priorities and create tools to facilitate effective integration of PFE concepts and strategies in care delivery and research. By putting PFE studies into context and helping people take action, the project team believes it can accelerate the process of transforming research findings into changes in practice. The long-term objective is to change culture and practice to be more patient- and family-centered. There is increasing evidence demonstrating why PFE is the right way to improve care and optimize health outcomes. To move from evidence to action, the team hopes to equip healthcare leaders with the tools to put these ideas into practice.

An advisory council of consumer advocates, patients and caregivers, and other healthcare leaders will inform the project team’s selection of PCORI studies and development of companion tools and resources. Throughout the project, the team intends to seek and incorporate perspectives too frequently left out of conversations about transforming the healthcare system. The team will prioritize strong partnerships with individuals and advocates who bring these diverse perspectives—from health-equity experts to caregivers to Medicaid experts.

To maximize the project’s impact, the team will work with healthcare providers and leaders who are in a unique position to integrate, act upon, and further spread PFE evidence and tools. The team expects forward-thinking healthcare stakeholders—including patient, payer, provider, and purchaser communities—to be eager consumers of the issue brief and capacity-building toolkits to help them incorporate best practices and emerging research. Additionally, the team looks forward to collaborating with leading health policy researchers and thought leaders who can help to translate research findings into implementable guidance for health providers and system leaders.