Confirm my health problem is getting better
Market: Complex patients with chronic conditions
Scenario: A 55-year-old patient receives recommendations from their doctor to manage their condition. They research the advice, gather necessary items, and monitor their health for improvement. If their condition doesn't stabilize, they adjust their approach. Based on their progress and doctor's guidance, they decide to stop, change, or continue the recommendations.
Average Difficulty: Medium (20-30% Range)
88 Outcomes 17% to 50% Difficulty
Research Insights
The study identified that the most challenging aspects for specialty drug users when confirming their health problem is getting better include preventing the condition from impacting lifestyle, managing stress while following recommendations, and preventing interruptions to life and family. The least difficult outcomes relate to getting information, feeling confident in care, and gathering supplies.
Job Steps
1. Receive recommendations from my provider about how to manage my condition
2. Research the recommendations and symptoms
3. Gather the items needed to follow the recommendations
4. Monitor to see if my health issue is stable or improving
5. Adjust what I am doing myself if it's not improving/ working for me
6. Stop, change, or continue with the help of my provider
Themes Identified
- Impact on Life: Preventing the condition from affecting lifestyle, interrupting life and family, and maintaining the ability to do desired activities.
- Emotional Well-being: Managing stress, addressing worries about the condition worsening, and coping with fear related to the health issue.
- Treatment Effectiveness: Finding medications with manageable side effects, self-managing the condition, and being taken seriously by healthcare professionals when disagreeing with recommendations.
Recommendations
- Provide resources and support to help users manage the impact of their condition on their lifestyle, family, and daily activities.
- Offer stress management tools and emotional support to address worries and fears related to their health issue.
- Facilitate open communication between users and healthcare professionals to ensure concerns are heard and addressed.
- Assist users in finding alternative treatments with manageable side effects and provide guidance on self-management.
- Simplify the process of making changes to medications or healthcare providers when needed.
Cautions
- Avoid overlooking the emotional toll of managing a chronic condition and the need for support in this area.
- Do not underestimate the importance of addressing the impact of the condition on the user's lifestyle and daily activities.
- Ensure that the user's concerns and disagreements with healthcare professionals are taken seriously and not dismissed.
- Be mindful of the potential challenges users may face when trying to make changes to their treatment plan or healthcare team.
- Do not assume that providing information alone is sufficient; users may need additional support to implement recommendations and manage their condition effectively.
Outcomes
The difficulty percentages below represent the proportion of the market that finds this outcome difficult to achieve.
| Difficulty | Outcome |
|---|---|
| 50% | Minimize my condition's impact on my lifestyle |
| 47% | Minimize my life stress while I am following my doctor's recommendations |
| 44% | Decrease interruption to my life and families from the condition |
| 43% | Decrease my worries of the conditions that could be something worse |
| 42% | Decrease side effects of new medication |
| 39% | Decrease my fears of my health issue |
| 39% | Decrease negative impacts to my lifestyle |
| 39% | Increase my ability to manage my condition myself |
| 38% | Decrease the time it takes to change my medication |
| 38% | Increase ability to be heard/taken seriously by provider when I disagree with a recommendations |
| 38% | Minimize the number of medications and still maintain my health if possible |
| 37% | Decrease my impact/needs/burden on others? |
| 36% | Decrease the time it takes to feel back to normal |
| 36% | Increase my awareness of ways I can be supported by insurance-covered tools or programs. |
| 35% | Decrease the time it takes to change my doctor |
| 35% | Increase my ability to prevent triggering a health condition. |
| 35% | Minimize my symptoms while I wait for the recommendations to work |
| 35% | Minimize the new things that I need to do with my diagnosis |
| 34% | Decrease the amount of information the doctor provides when I am emotional |
| 34% | Increase my ability to follow the recommended therapy even when it's physically difficult. |
| 33% | Decrease the amount of follow up I need to do when I am waiting on lab work |
| 33% | Increase my understanding of what this could mean to my career |
| 32% | Decrease concerns while waiting for test results |
| 32% | Decrease the time to find the answers to the cause or triggers for my condition |
| 32% | Increase ability to adjust my work/life commitments to improve symptoms |
| 32% | Increase my access to support groups |
| 32% | Increase support system for managing emotional toll of diagnosis. |
| 31% | Decrease my fear of what my symptoms mean |
| 31% | Increase confidence in knowing which condition/ailment is causing what symptom |
| 31% | Increase my ability to process details when I get difficult health news |
| 31% | Increase the number of opportunities to get counseling |
| 30% | Decrease the time between initial diagnosis and second opinion |
| 30% | Increase transparency into cost savings options for Specialty medications |
| 30% | Minimize my lifestyle's impact on my condition |
| 29% | Decrease the time it takes to change my pharmacy |
| 29% | Decrease time it takes to try different therapies to become stable. |
| 29% | Increase communication with friends and families about my condition |
| 29% | Increase my ability to revisit health records in a portal. |
| 28% | Decrease the time it takes to get test results |
| 28% | Increase coordination between my different health providers |
| 28% | Increase my confidence that I am getting the right items recommended by my doctor (e.g., medications, foods, supplements, equipment) |
| 28% | Increase my understanding of how my condition could impact my future |
| 27% | Increase addressing each recommendation with specific actions |
| 27% | Increase awareness of health restrictions or dietary restrictions |
| 27% | Increase my knowledge of when to stop or start something if I'm seeing a change. (pre authority) |
| 27% | Increase my understanding of what this could mean to my lifestyle |
| 27% | Increase the ease of determining if a referred doctor will be "a good fit" for me. |
| 27% | Increase the focus of my research by talking to my healthcare professional first |
| 27% | Increase the quality of care by advocating for myself |
| 27% | Minimize time it takes to know if the recommendation is working |
| 27% | Minimize my symptoms while I am waiting for my next appointment. |
| 26% | Decrease my fear that what I'm doing, though it causes pain, will not cause further damage. |
| 26% | Decrease the distance I have to travel to my doctor |
| 26% | Improve the compassion my doctor has when communicating difficult news. |
| 26% | Increase ability to be heard/taken seriously by provider when I need to make a change |
| 26% | Increase my confidence that the items are necessary. (e.g., medications, foods, supplements, equipment) |
| 26% | Increase the relevancy of my research to my situation |
| 26% | Maximize the number of items the provider can give me at the appointment |
| 25% | Increase my understanding of what symptoms require immediate attention |
| 24% | Decrease the distance I have to travel to get health care (doctor's office or lab work) |
| 24% | Increase ability to access and get help from care team for care plan. |
| 24% | Increase my understanding of what this could mean to my family |
| 24% | Increase the ease of preparing my questions before seeing my doctor |
| 24% | Increase the ease of seeing a referred doctor. |
| 24% | Increase the number of trusted resources concerning the recommendations that are given to me by doctor |
| 23% | Increase my confidence that recommendation is the right one, especially when it's invasive. |
| 23% | Increase my knowledge of available treatment options so I am confident in which one is right for me |
| 23% | Increase the knowledge for when should I take action to see the doctor before it causes further damage |
| 23% | Increase the quality of the referrals that I receive |
| 22% | Increase ability to be heard/taken seriously by provider when I experience symptoms from a medication or supplement |
| 22% | Increase ability to remember to track |
| 22% | Increase continuity of care by developing trust with my doctor |
| 22% | Increase my understanding of what this could mean to my independence |
| 22% | Increase the amount of communication that goes through my patient portal |
| 22% | Increase the completeness of my doctors' response to my questions |
