In the Battle of Doctor’s Orders Versus Patient Power, the Patient is Winning

Today, patients are no longer patients in the traditional sense; they are consumers who are demanding to know more about their own bodies and health conditions. Advances in digital technology and information on the Internet are helping to meet this demand. Some professionals, like Dr.

Today, patients are no longer patients in the traditional sense; they are consumers who are demanding to know more about their own bodies and health conditions. Advances in digital technology and information on the Internet are helping to meet this demand. Some professionals, like Dr. Eric Topol, suggest that “patient power” is not only inevitable, but could be essential to fixing the health care delivery system in the United States – and we at Popper and Company tend to agree.

Hugo Campos is one individual who underscores this newfound power. Mr. Campos has a defibrillator implanted in his chest that automatically alerts his doctor if he experiences sudden cardiac arrest. As a recent MEDCITY News article illustrates, Mr. Campos is creating controversy in the medical device and health care industries by requesting to see the raw data from his defibrillator.

We’ll be writing more about Dr. Topol’s vision and the role of the empowered patient in future blog posts as we see this as a critical topic for medical device and diagnostic companies to consider. If you have thoughts or questions on this topic, please share them here.