By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    What Are the Benefits of CBD?
    November 27, 2021
    How to Measure Adult Diapers- The Ultimate Guide to Picking the Right Size
    March 8, 2022
    medicine cabinet
    The Effect Of Finished Dosage Form Manufacturing In New Drugs
    July 5, 2022
    Latest News
    Getting Back in the Game: Sports Injuries Rehabilitation Tips
    May 31, 2023
    4 Signs It’s Time to See a Therapist
    May 24, 2023
    11 Ways To Modernize Your Private Practice
    May 17, 2023
    How to Recognize the Signs of Hormonal Imbalance in Men
    May 29, 2023
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Primary Care Workforce Shortage: Possible Solutions
    January 5, 2012
    Meditate Your Way to Longer Telomeres; Keep Aging at Bay?
    January 31, 2012
    Restrict Flexible Spending Accounts
    August 25, 2017
    Latest News
    MRI Sedation Options: What You Should Know Before Screening
    May 17, 2023
    What is the Process of Creating Medicine from Nature?
    May 2, 2023
    Choosing the Right Treatment Option for Varicose Veins
    May 2, 2023
    What Are Wrong-Site Surgeries and How Do They Occur?
    April 27, 2023
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Book Review: Using Information Therapy to Put Patients First
Share
Sign In
Notification Show More
Aa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Aa
Search
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > Book Review: Using Information Therapy to Put Patients First
Business

Book Review: Using Information Therapy to Put Patients First

malpani
Last updated: 2011/12/29 at 10:11 AM
malpani
Share
9 Min Read
SHARE

My teacher, Dr Bhandarkar, kindly reviewed my book, and had some very nice things to say about it !

—————–

My teacher, Dr Bhandarkar, kindly reviewed my book, and had some very nice things to say about it !

—————–

More Read

employee's wellness

How Hospitals and Other Healthcare Providers Can Boost Employee Morale

What are the Benefits of Hospitals and Clinics Using Expense Management Services?
Tips to Keep Health Workers Safe in the Workplace
9 Hospitals That Have Introduced Green Initiatives
Best Money-Saving Tips for Health Managers

It was a privilege to be asked to review Dr. Aniruddha Malpani’s book ‘ Using Information Therapy to Put Patients First ’. Dr. Malpani was my student at KEM Hospital and is now a practicing gynecologist and an ‘ IVF doctor’. But, his mastery over modern Information Technology is amazing. He has ably married his knowledge of both his specialties and produced this book. It is written in simple language and uses jargon only when absolutely necessary. This has made it a highly readable book. I enjoyed reading the book and learned a lot from it. While reading it, I was continually reminded of one the finest books of the same size as the present book that I have read 25 years ago viz. ‘ Statistics In Small Doses ’ by Winifred Castle. The similarity between the two books is uncanny: both have many small chapters, each dealing with one facet of the subject of the book, and are structured superbly with progressive increase in details of information. The chapters are independent of each other, and yet linked by the common theme, Information Therapy, for the empowerment of patients .

Dr. Malpani defines Information Therapy as the “ prescription of the right information, to the right person, at the right time to help him to make the right decisions ”. In this book he has discussed how not only patients but also doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies insurance companies benefit from Information Therapy, medically and financially, the latter without the vulgarity of greed. It is a ‘ win-win situation ’ for every one in the health care world. For the doctors, whenever a patient asks questions about his ailment and its treatment, it should not be looked upon as a burden but as an opportunity to learn. In fact, in life ‘ No questions, No learning ’. Proactive Information Therapy does even better; for, teaching is the best method of learning.

The first eleven chapters describe in detail what the individual doctor can do for his patients and how he can do it. This part of the book resembles ‘ Good Medical Practice ’, a publication of the General Medical Council of Great Britain, in its philosophy. He rightly advocates ‘ ONLINE ’ technology for this purpose, and defends it with the skill of an advocate. He strongly favours each doctor having his own website to make it possible for the patient to learn about his ailment and its treatment at his home and at his own time. The book is full of URLs for a patient to use for learning more about what is prescribed, especially the drugs and their side effects, and to get answers to their questions on 24/7 basis. With the spread of computer literacy in India, and the availability of affordable computers this should be possible, at least for upper middle class and affluent patients. However, this method is time- and funds- intensive and is only possible for doctors who are willing to learn online technology, and are willing to spend the time and money needed, particularly in the initially stages. The online method of patient education also makes it possible for the patient to interact with the doctor via email, without having to visit him at his clinic, and even without using the telephone. Finally, the doctor can learn about the patient’s perception of the treatment which helps the doctor to fine-tune the treatment to suit the patient’s preferences It also facilitates the formation of online patient support groups.

This is followed by chapters on how it makes sense for hospitals, pharma companies and the health insurance companies to participate in generating and transmitting material for Information Therapy. Such an effort on their part gives them more visibility, more credibility, more goodwill and happiness on the part of the users of these services. It lowers their cost of doing business , making them more profitable.

The ready to use and easily accessible Information Therapy material on the internet; and that generated by the doctors for their own patients are the back bone of this effort by various health service providers. If the data generated by this effort is used to build centralized data banks, they will facilitate trans-physician, instant access to patients’ medical records, and therefore continuity and improvement in patient care. Such service has been made possible by the availability of smart-phones and tablets with increasingly powerful processing and transmitting facilities in them.

The author then stresses the importance of medical librarians, who are professionals specially trained in searching information from books, CDs as well as on the internet, and make it availability to practicing doctors, their patients and to the research workers. To do this successfully, they must be respected and given their proper status in the complex hierarchy of the healthcare world.

The author then takes to task the half-baked, circulation-oriented and. therefore, hurried, inaccurate and misguiding medical reporting on the ‘ latest medical advances ’ in the newspapers. He makes a plea that medical reporting in newspapers must be entrusted to a team of full-time devoted news reporter doing exclusively medical reporting.

Information Therapy makes for a more transparent and therefore more trustworthy doctor-patient relationship. It must be recognized that the patients also have ‘ The Right to Information ( RT I ) ’ and this right must be respected by all concerned. It now has received the judicial seal, and it is in the doctors’ interest to embed this in their day to day medical practice.

While doing all this, we will do well to learn from the experience of other countries such as the U S which have such services in place in an advanced form; and then modulate them to suit the ethos in this country.

All in all, this is a comprehensive, easily readable and informative book, and it is worthwhile for every doctor to possess his own copy. Now that the new medical syllabus in India includes an exclusive, 2 ½ month term for a Foundation Course immediately on admission to a medical college, this book should be recommended reading for every new entrant to the medical college. That is the best time to read this book. For the citizens, it can be a Right to Health Information adviser.

It will be helpful if the future editions include a summary appendix , listing all the URLs mentioned in the book and the type of information offered in each of them.

Great going, Aniruddha !

Dr S. D. Bhandarkar, M.D., F.R.C.P. (Edin.), F.R.C.P. (Glasgow)
Retd Hon. Professor & Head, Dept. of Endocrinology & Associate in Clinical Pharmacology
Seth G S Medical College & K E M Hospital, Mumbai

Enhanced by Zemanta

TAGGED: book review, Information Therapy

Sign Up For Daily Newsletter

Be keep up! Get the latest breaking news delivered straight to your inbox.
By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.
malpani December 29, 2011
Share this Article
Facebook Twitter Copy Link Print
Share
Previous Article Video: Eliminating Barriers To Care Using Technology
Next Article Going the Distance: Connectivity in HealthCare

Stay Connected

1.5k Followers Like
4.5k Followers Follow
2.8k Followers Pin
136k Subscribers Subscribe

Latest News

medical bills
Who is Responsible for Paying the Medical Bills After an Injury?
News June 1, 2023
sports injury rehabilitation
Getting Back in the Game: Sports Injuries Rehabilitation Tips
Health May 31, 2023
brush your day
How Many Times A Day Should You Brush Your Teeth?
Dental health May 29, 2023
Chiropractic Laser Therapy: A Beacon of Hope for Chronic Pain Sufferers
Chiropractic Laser Therapy: A Beacon of Hope for Chronic Pain Sufferers
Therapies May 29, 2023

You Might also Like

Types of Remote Access Solutions for Hospitals
Medicare

Types of Remote Access Solutions for Hospitals

April 27, 2023
get a career in medical device sales
Medicare

What Are the Benefits of Attending Medical Sales College?

April 10, 2023
subscription based telemedicine
Hospital Administration

Subscription Management Solutions Are Crucial for Telemedicine

April 5, 2023
patient's well-being
Hospital Administration

Comfort And Safety: 7 Ways Healthcare Organizations Can Create A Better Environment For Their Patients

April 4, 2023
//

We influence million of users and is the most authentic source of information on healthcare business and technology news.

Quick Links

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Subscribe

Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!

Follow US

© 2008-2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?