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Relationships between self‐help health organizations and professional health care providers
Author(s) -
Simpson Rosemary Graham
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
health and social care in the community
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.984
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1365-2524
pISSN - 0966-0410
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2524.1996.tb00083.x
Subject(s) - harmony (color) , public relations , government (linguistics) , health care , value (mathematics) , nursing , professional association , quality (philosophy) , context (archaeology) , professional development , medicine , psychology , political science , medical education , law , art , paleontology , linguistics , philosophy , epistemology , machine learning , computer science , visual arts , biology
This paper discusses areas of conflict in the relationships between professional and lay knowledge and values, in the context of disease‐specific self‐help groups. In the current climate of Government emphasis on consumer satisfaction, and local voice initiatives, collaboration amongst professionals, clients and consumers has become of increased importance. Agreement and harmony between professional and lay care‐givers is essential to the development of improved and extended health care provision. Findings from a study of patients who have undergone open heart surgery, and their families, are used to identifiy areas of conflicts generally, between professional and lay discourses, and illustrates these problem areas by examples found in the individual self‐help group study. If the highest possible quality of health care is to be achieved, both professional and lay discourses should be of value, and both contribute to patients' well‐being and recovery. Professional courses should include information and training on consumer issues, and mutual support principles.