Therapeutic patient education: an introductory guide (WHO, 14 November 2023)

Summary

The prevalence of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) or chronic diseases is increasing in Europe. NCDs now account for 90% of deaths in the WHO European Region, yet most health systems were developed to treat and care for people with acute conditions. Health care services are still lagging behind in terms of responding to the particular needs of those living with chronic conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease (hypertension and heart failure) and respiratory diseases (asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). 

Policy-makers and health-care managers are working to better organize health services to reflect and cater to the needs of these patients, for example by strengthening integrated primary health-care services. Important work is also needed to increase people’s knowledge, skills and confidence to manage their own conditions on a day-to-day basis, outside of health-care settings. Patients spend on average 2 hours per year with their health professional and the rest of the time they need to take care of their health themselves. Supporting patients to self-manage their condition is crucial to improving outcomes and reducing anxiety and complications. 

WHO Regional Office for Europe has published a new “how-to” guide for policy-makers, health professionals, and education and training bodies on therapeutic patient education (TPE). The guide covers commissioning, designing and delivering TPE services and training programmes for health professionals. It also looks at the evidence and theory underpinning patient education, outlines key components for delivering a high-quality service and identifies implementation opportunities and barriers.