The Patient Partner Program, a requirement for second-year Melbourne University medical students, aims to provide a window into the lives of patients with chronic conditions, giving students a better understanding of patient experience.
And, on the other hand, patients have a student on hand to listen, explain and assist them, if needed, in their journey.
Program co-ordinator Lou Bush said generally students approached a patient and asked them to take part in the program.
If they agreed, what followed was a six-month partnership of sorts, where the student attended the patient’s medical appointments, Ms Bush said.
Sarah Marshall, a former program participant, recalls the value of the program.
‘‘I was able to ask whether I could follow her (the patient) though part of her journey ... I was able to go to her oncology appointments, I sat with her in chemotherapy ... for one of the sessions,’’ she said.
‘‘Being a second-year student, you don’t necessarily have a lot of knowledge about the healthcare system, particularly from a patient point of view.
‘‘So going along to those appointments ... is really useful and insightful as a new student, being able to see it from the patient point of view.’’
Dr Marshall said from the patient’s perspective, details were not always perfectly explained and it was valuable for the patient to have someone who could take the extra time to explain things, to help avoid potential confusions or frustrations.
Ms Bush said from the perspective of a new doctor, it was not always easy to understand how a chromic illness affected the lives of the patient and their family.
Shepparton Parkinson’s Support Group takes part in the project.
Group president Peter Leahy said in his experience, not all students had experience with Parkinson’s disease.
‘‘Over the years, we’re very keen to highlight the problems of having Parkinson’s and hopefully encouraging some of the students to specialise or take a particular interest in Parkinson’s.
‘‘I think it’s a hard disease to diagnose.’’
Dr Marshall said there were benefits for both sides in the partnership.
Ms Bush said a student could take on the role of advocate for the patient.
‘‘They can go away and discuss what happened in that appointment,’’ she said.
‘‘Having that second person there helps.’’
Dr Marshall agreed and said it provided an opportunity to see things from a patient’s perspective and that having an extra person there for those tougher conversations could provide valuable extra support for the patient.
‘‘As a student, it teaches you you’re not always there as the health professional,’’ she said.
‘‘You’ve got to have that human part as well.
‘‘By having programs like this ... (you) see the patient as a whole, to see how their illness affects them ... that’s really valuable in making good well-rounded doctors.’’
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