UVM Integrative Lecture Series: “Integrative Patient-Centered Care: Health Care Improvement or True Transformation?”
Lecture Type: Online Video (Link Here)
Time: 61 minutes 46 seconds
Date: May 18, 2015
Speakers: Tracy Gaudet, M.D.
Topic: Patient-Centered Care
Introduction
Dr. Tracy Gaudet presents on health care system transformation using a whole health approach for the University of Vermont Laura Mann Integrative Health Care Lecture Series. She provides tools developed through the Veteran’s Health Administration (VHA) and explains how this organization is changing from a problem-based system to one that is based on the wellbeing of the whole person.
Dr. Gaudet is the director of the Veterans Health Administration’s Office of Patient-Centered Care and Cultural Transformation at the time of this talk. She was also the founding executive director of the Arizona Integrative Medicine Program and Executive Direct at Duke before this.
You can view the lecture directly by clicking the link here.
You can download the PowerPoint presentation for this lecture by clicking the link here.
Unites States Health Care Today
According to Dr. Gaudet, the United States healthcare system is in crisis. As displayed in the figure below, the U.S. has a combination of a high cost of care and low life expectancy. Part of the problem is that the U.S. is based on a high-tech system solely used to address disease.
For example, Dr. Gaudet explains that heart disease is the number 1 killer of Americans. And how is this treated? – with 1.3 million angioplasties and 4448,000 bypass stents, each costing $48,000 and $100,000 respectively. Despite these high-cost interventions, 95% of patients who received them were not shown to have a prolonged life expectancy and they did not prevent future heart attacks.
In contrast, lifestyle medicine has been estimated to prevent 90% of all heart diseases in the United States! Such lifestyle interventions may include nutrition education, exercise, stress reduction, and behavior change support.
Dr. Gaudet explains that the American healthcare crisis must change from addressing reductionistic causative factors that lead to disease. Instead, health care must be personalized, proactive, and patient-centered. She calls this whole health – a transformation from sick care to health care that inspires the highest possible health of patients.
Transforming Care
The Veterans Health Administration is enacting the whole health change within its organization. They acknowledge that changing lifestyles and incorporating holistic health modalities requires meaning-making and behavior change. They incorporate this in a variety of ways. Below you will see key changes that the VHA has made to create a whole health model.
Key Changes:
- Incorporating Chief Aspiration into the medical record (Chief Complaint is typically used in medical documentation today).
- Develop continuous healing relationships utilizing health coaches and primary care doctors.
- Customizing care through personalized health plans using patient education, varied healing modalities, and support.
- Building behavior change skills to support change.
The VHA provides open-source learning materials and resources for healthcare providers to expand whole health system change outside of their organization. Click on the links below to view handouts to guide clinical interactions and health care plans, as well as links to other resources that may be helpful. You can also scroll to the bottom of this page to view the full PDF versions.
- Whole Health Inventory Tool (pdf link)
- Personal Health Plan Tool (pdf link)
- Whole Health Education and Resources for Clinicians Home Page
- Clinicians Tools
- Education Champion Materials
- Peer Facilitator Materials
Concluding Thoughts
Dr. Gaudet believes the time is now to transform the United States’ health care system. Modeling the Veteran’s Health Administration, you may be able to incorporate these changes within your health system utilizing some of the tools she shared in this PowerPoint.
Check out the lecture video here.
Download the PowerPoint presentation here.
Visit the UVM Integrative Lecture Series home page here.
Citation
Gaudet, T. (2015, May 18). [Lecture Recording]. University of Vermont Laura Mann Integrative Health Care Lecture Series. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4CEdpeS2_8&feature=youtu.be
Disclaimer
This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice or to take the place of medical advice or treatment from a personal physician. All viewers of this content are advised to consult their doctors or qualified health professionals regarding specific health questions. The publisher of this content does not take responsibility for possible health consequences of any person or persons reading or following the information in this educational content. All viewers of this content, especially those taking prescription or over-the-counter medications, should consult their physicians before beginning any nutrition, supplement, exercise or other lifestyle program.