When I evaluate a new patient, I work to compress data collection and screen time on the front end of the visit so I can free up the remainder of the visit for face-to-face discussion and shared decision making. This intentional visit design is necessary because of the realities of modern clinic schedules. And so the questions I ask and their sequence is important to my understanding as well as the experience of the patient.

In medicine there are clinical interview questions that deliver high impact nuggets at low-cost. This is one of them. This question exposes critical data that, in the background, often drives my initial approach to diagnostics and therapy. If you are a health professional try it and you’ll see. Clearly, there are clinical specialty visits that are more transactional where open-ended questions are not as critical. A good example would be consultation with a surgeon for hernia repair where the task at hand is unequivocal. (Source: 33charts.com)

Caregivers provide help to another person in need. The person receiving care may be an adult - often a parent or a spouse - or a child with special medical needs. Some caregivers are family members. Others are paid. They do a lot of things.

Caregiving is hard, and caregivers of chronically ill people often feel stress. They are "on call" 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If you're caring for someone with mental problems like Alzheimer's disease it can be especially difficult. Support groups can help. (Source: medlineplus.gov)

Caregiving takes many forms. Many of us help older, sick, or disabled family members and friends every day. We know we are helping, but we don't think of ourselves as caregivers. We are glad to do this and feel rewarded by it, but if the demands are heavy, over time we can also become exhausted and stressed. We think we should be able to handle caregiving roles on top of busy work and family schedules and begin to feel guilty and depressed as our stamina wanes.

About 44 million Americans provide 37 billion hours of unpaid, "informal" care each year for adult family members and friends with chronic illnesses or conditions that prevent them from handling daily activities such as bathing, managing medications or preparing meals on their own. (Source: www.caregiver.org)

Through our partnership with Care 24/7 we are helping hospitals revolutionize provider-based population health management by improving patient care after hospital discharge, ultimately leading to better patient outcomes and increased revenue.

Care 24/7’s provider-based population health management program provides personalized care management services for your patients, and manages the complex insurance reimbursement process for your organization. (Source: www.thewellnessnetwork.net)