Beyond experiential knowledge: a classification of patient knowledge (4 June 2024)

Summary

Patients’ lived experience is increasingly seen as a valid form of knowledge in healthcare. However, although it is often said to be a source of valuable information to complement the knowledge of healthcare professionals, it remains difficult for people within the system to understand and use the different forms of knowledge patients acquire through their experience. In addition, patient knowledge is often not seen as essential in co-building care plans or valued as an asset in building care relationships. This narrative review in the journal Social Theory & Health, aimed to:

1. challenge the dominant model of knowledge in medicine and healthcare by making the various forms of patient knowledge more explicit and tangible.
2. provide a better understanding of what experiential knowledge consists of by classifying the various forms of knowledge patient acquire, develop and use throughout their care journey.

The authors classify six types of patient knowledge according to their source of learning: embodied, monitoring, navigation, medical, relational and cultural knowledge. They also identify three main sources of learning for patients: the self, the system and the community.