Patient Involvement in Health Care. Different Terms Same Concept?

Abstract

Patient participation in health care is widely considered as crucial for the development of improved health systems and the refined management of chronic conditions. Against this background, however, there are divergent views and contradictions regarding its definition and actual content and scope. Moreover, there is no consensus as to the appropriate interventions, hence assessing their impact remains a challenge. The authors herein comment on the terms that are most commonly used for defining patient involvement in health care and underline the barriers identified in everyday clinical practice that may be responsible for failing to fully materialize its potential impact and/or endorsing it in real life.