Michael Millenson

Health Quality Advisors

Demanding Medical Excellence,

by Michael Millenson

It was the Women’s Movement that gave great impetus toward Participatory Medicine — understanding and taking responsibility for the care of our own bodies.

The Society for Participatory Medicine helps patients, physicians and healthcare professionals understand the benefits to each of them in working out constructive partnerships. “We think medicine is best practiced as a collaboration.”

People with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (aka Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) are benefitting from the existence of a long-term persistent effect of having had COVID-19. This chronic fatigue is helping physicians understand the reality of this condition, and to work toward a cure.

Advocates have been working since the 1990’s to increase a patient’s participation in his or her care, creating partnership with their physicians and helping physicians focus not only on the “best treatment,” but also on the quality of the patient’s life. Michael Millenson, author of Demanding Medical Excellence, speaks with Joyce Graff and Robin Martinez about his recent article “Does a Pandemic Preempt Participatory Medicine?” and how people with complex medical conditions need to work with their doctors to determine how best to manage that condition and the risks or realities of COVID-19.

Full text of Article: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7744137/