Click Here to Download the Abridged Snapshot of People's Engagement in Their Health Care Report
Click Here to Download the Snapshot Collection of Data TablesA review of 31 national surveys performed by the Center for Advancing Health (CFAH) found that we do not actively and consistently perform many of the actions directly linked to benefiting from the health care available to us.
The review of surveys conducted from 2001-2009 found that for the majority of engagement behaviors for which survey data were available:
More of us appear to perform simpler tasks (e.g., make a list of medications) than more complex actions (e.g., make informed treatment decisions). We seem to defer to information—and advice seeking—until we have a specific need for it. And the depth of our participation in any engagement behavior set tends to be shallow. For example, many more of us seek out information about a provider or health plan than actually use the information to make a choice. Poor health, insufficient knowledge, skills, confidence, lack of external support and insurance hinder our ability to participate fully.
While we bear responsibility to engage actively and knowledgeably in our health care, we cannot do so effectively unless health professionals and care settings welcome and encourage our participation.
The promise of health reform initiatives and legislation to improve care will only be achieved with increased engagement of individuals. Health care professional organizations, consumer advocates, health plans, hospitals and government agencies have critical roles to play in reducing barriers to our participation, producing better tools to support our engagement and ensuring that health care is accountable to and for us.
Below, we have provided you with helpful links to our research:
Snapshot Summary: This summary will provide you with a brief background on the Snapshot research and highlights from the report and its findings.
Snapshot of People’s Engagement in Their Health Care - Full Report: We’ve made the full report available here. This look at a Snapshot of People’s Engagement in Health Care explains our research methods in more detail, provides more data (including tables) regarding specific behaviors and the frequency with which we do them, and offers goals and recommendations based on our findings.
Snapshot Collection of Data Tables: Seventeen data tables were created for the Snapshot. These tables have been organized by behavior group (i.e. “Organize Health Care,” “Participate in Treatment,” “Promote Health,” etc.) in the order presented in the complete Snapshot report. They are collected here in one document for easy access and use by researchers, policy organizations and other health care stakeholders.
CFAH is an independent non-profit organization that receives funding from the Annenberg Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and others.
