"Expert patient"--dream or nightmare?

doi:10.1136/bmj.328.7442.723

BMJ 2004;328:723-724 (27 March), doi:10.1136/bmj.328.7442.723

Editorial

"Expert patient"—dream or nightmare?

The concept of a well informed patient is welcome, but a newname is needed

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Since the chief medical officer for England first introducedthe term expert patient, it has been picked up and used verywidely.¹ During this time, the notion of the expert patientseems to have been criticised by doctors at least as much asit has been welcomed.² If one asks lawyers, architects, socialworkers, or management consultants whether they prefer clientswho take an interest in the issues they face and are motivatedto work in partnership to achieve successful results, the answerseems obvious. So why does the idea of expert patients provokesuch antipathy within the medical profession?

We know from reading the press and listening to the debate thatwhen doctors come across the term "expert patient" they heardifferent things. For the chief medical officer, expert patientsare "people who have the confidence, skills, information andknowledge to play a central role in the management of . . . [Full text of this article]

Joanne Shaw, director

Medicines Partnership, London SE1 7JN (jshaw@medicines-partnership.org)

Mary Baker, president, European Federation of Neurological Associations

Mayford GU22 0SH

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