Why patient engagement matters

At age 31, after completing his medical training as a family physician, Dr. Alan Glaseroff learned he had Type 1 diabetes. Determined to defy predictions of a shortened life, Dr. Glaseroff began a journey with his diabetes patients to test new ways of self-managing the condition. His pioneering work in patient engagement led him to the Stanford University School of Medicine where today he is developing a new model of care for high-cost, high-need patients. For those facing multiple chronic conditions, Dr. Glaseroff’s message is one of hope: It’s not where you start, but where you end up that matters.

Focusing on patient goals, building trust by listening, not telling people what to do, but asking them what they think they should do…it turns out the thing that really drives successful work with high-cost, high-need patients is self-management.
— Alan Glaseroff, MD, Co-Founder, Stanford Coordinated Care