A new study from the American Journal of Health Promotion shares some fascinating news about the value of teaching people to make savvy choices about their health care: It actually makes people healthier.
First of all, what is wise health care consumerism?
- Knowing how to choose a health care plan
- Finding the right health care provider and evaluating the care you receive
- Communicating with your care provider (e.g., asking questions, sharing concerns, negotiating costs)
- Practicing preventive care (e.g., staying up to date on routine screenings)
- Practicing self-care (e.g., treating yourself at home for a cold instead of visiting the doctor)
- Understanding your prescriptions (e.g., how to take them properly, if/when to refill them, asking for generics when available)
- Analyzing and evaluating sources of health information (e.g., Google vs. a self-care guide or medical reference book)
In the study – conducted at two large Midwestern companies — one group of employees received a traditional health education program, including nutrition, physical education, smoking cessation, and stress management, with high-risk employees receiving health coaching as well. Another group of employees instead received education in wise health consumer practices, with high-risk employees also receiving health coaching — but less of it.
In a follow-up survey two years later, both groups had reduced their health risk behaviors.
It’s true that the traditional health intervention was more successful overall. But the intervention that taught employees to take ownership of their care and be smarter shoppers also worked. It was also cheaper to implement, and while the study did not explore the cost savings presented to the organization, a program like this could be highly effective at reducing health care costs: An avoided doctor visit saves about $206 dollars, based on the average cost of a doctor visit; an avoided trip to the E.R. saves around $708.
Says study author Paul Terry, Ph.D.:
“I think because activation results were positive, favorable and involved a lower overall investment, the lesson learned is not to give up on traditional approaches to health education but to layer in an emphasis on consumer skills, especially for clients who lack them and want to take advantage of new resources.”
Our recommendation? If your budget is tight, teaching wise health care consumerism can help you get by with less traditional health education programming.
We’ll share tips for getting your wise health care consumerism program started throughout this week.