Can Prognostication Science Save the Future of Medicine? |
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| Event | Interactive 2011 |
| Format | Solo |
| Organizer | Christian Sinclair – Kansas City Hospice & Palliative Care |
| Description | Most people are familiar with two of the three essential skills needed in medicine: diagnosing a disease and choosing a therapy. But many in medicine and the general public overlook the skill which may eventually save the future of health care: prognostication. Formulating a prognosis is not merely “tell¬ing the future” or “making a best guess” although when you ask a clinician most find it difficult to elucidate the reasons why they come up with any prognosis. This leads to increased uncertainty on the part of the patient and physician, which therefore leads to the default of ‘more medical treatment’ and by consequence more cost. This session aims to increase the understanding of the emerging field of prediction science in medicine as the ultimate synthesis of the growth of electronic health records and growing concern over exploding health care costs. The NIH and pharmaceutical companies spend billions of dollars on research increasing the technological capacities of our diagnostic and therapeutic options, but few dollars are spent on improving the capacity for health care professionals to counsel patients accurately about which treatment option would work best. Health care professionals armed with more accurate prognostic tools can help patients make more informed choices, which may lead to more focused use of limited health care resources while still maintaining quality health care for all. |
| Questions Answered |
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| Level | Intermediate |
| Category | Health |
| Tags | Medicine, reform, science |