osoz world
Patients Are Often “Included” To Improve Corporate Image Many med-tech companies are convinced that the hi-tech solutions created by their engineers and wrapped up in patient-centricity slogans by marketers will quickly get beloved by patients. Birgit Bauer – patient advocate and digital health expert recently assigned to The HIMSS Future50 Community – easily recognizes when “patient inclusion” is just an empty promise. What’s wrong with conferences on digitalization in healthcare organized without patients on the stage?
There is one phrase that is used often: “Patients know best what their needs are.” They can explain what they need and what things should look like. Ex-
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OSOZ Polska 8/2021
cluding patients also means avoiding diversity and equality, limiting value and benefits to the audience. I think nobody wants that, right? Frankly, patients need to be represented at these conferences to provide value and better direction for the discussion. They can help companies to create tools
and services tailored to the users’ needs. If we want to talk about patient-centricity and customer-oriented products, we must involve patients and listen to them.
