Yes! A Patient Advocate Can Help – Learn Why You Might Need One.

Learn What a Patient Advocate Is

and

How They Can Help You Below!

 

– What is a Patient Advocate?

 

• A Patient Advocate helps you navigate the medical, insurance and financial systems related to Health Care. An advocate may be a trained medical professional, experienced Advocate, family caregiver or even a friend.

 

• The very best advocates are knowledgeable, solution-oriented, and results-driven. They are also great listeners, empathetic, calm, organized, assertive, and comfortable asking the right questions.

 

• “A Patient Advocate works with seniors and can remain with an at-risk patient through a gauntlet of healthcare contexts, from simple wellness appointments to urgent care, hospitalizations and through long-term care in the home. A patient care advocate is neutral to all of the providers and clinicians that a senior receives care from and is a focused advocate for their care.”

   ~John Hopkins Medicine

 

– How Can an Advocate Help You?

 

• An advocate can help you, or your loved one, access the care you need, make intelligent, informed decisions and understand the complex health systems that affect your life and health.

 

• A good advocate understands what actions are needed now, and an experienced advocate can anticipate potential needs in your future.

 

– Check Out These 14 Tasks that Patient Advocates Can Handle For You: 

(From the Institute on Aging)

 

1. Identify any unmet medical, financial, or legal needs and make recommendations about how to meet them, or how to advocate for them.

 

2. Find doctors, specialists, and hospitals that meet your treatment needs and are covered by your insurance plan.

 

3. Help you if you’re hospitalized, although many hospitals do provide Patient Advocates to assist you.

 

4. Go with you to your appointments, take notes, ask important questions of the doctor, and ensure critical details aren’t missed.

 

5. Keep track of old and new symptoms, problems with current treatments, or discuss significant changes with the doctor.

 

6. Scrutinize health care options with the patient, family, and health care team.

 

7. Explain your options in an easy-to-understand, jargon-free manner.

 

8. Help create an individualized care plan and coordinate the appointments, services, and resources to implement it.

 

9. Talk to insurance companies, billers, or government agencies on your behalf.

 

10. Handle routine or complex paperwork and service deliveries.

 

11. Assist you and your family re: applying to government programs such as Medicare and/or Medicaid.

 

12. Recommend options to you and family, such as a Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA), that may help with legal and medical decision-making issues.

 

13. Instruct you and your family on how to communicate more effectively with healthcare professionals, insurance companies, government offices, and other service providers.

 

14. Your Advocate will fight for your rights!

 

Whether the advocate you choose is a professional, a family member or a friend,

they can make things easier, ensure that you have all the information you need, confirm that you understand your options,

and be a powerful 3^rd party to look out for your best interests.

 

For More Information On Patient Advocacy:

•  Institute On Aging –Learn More Here.
• John Hopkins Medicine – Learn More Here.