Who's in Charge?
It takes two...
Democratisation and political rhetoric raise expectation within the general population.
Self-management is, in part, about rationalising expectation using ‘smart’ thinking, whereby expectations and outcomes as jointly sought by clinicians and patients are:
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Realistic
Tangible
Self-management is not about a fight for control. The advent of personal health budgets is testament to this.
Wherever possible self-management is about patients and clinicians being able to competently and fully share information thus ensuring that the best clinical decisions are made.
Self-management is about clinician and patient working closely together to ensure patient lifestyle supports clinical decision making, maximising clinical and personal outcomes for practitioner and beneficiary respectively.
Self-management is not for everyone.
