patients – APHA Blog : The Alliance of Professional Health Advocates

B*tching and Moaning – Therapeutic and Educational

It doesn’t happen often, but when it does, it’s always an eyeopener and usually quite unsettling.

When done well, and handled well, it can turn out to be therapeutic, and has the potential for great opportunity.

I’m talking about moaning, groaning, complaining and yes – b*tching. Whether it’s a client complaining about an advocate, or the other way around, sometimes it’s fair and understandable, sometimes not. Sometimes it can escalate. Other times it can be diffused.

In all cases we can learn from complaints. So let’s take a look.

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11
JUN

advocacy business, advocacy ethics, advocate best practices, advocate education, client services, common sense, decision making, health advocates and navigators, patient advocacy, patients

Should Insurance Provide Reimbursement to Independent Advocates?

Posted by: Trisha Torrey

I had interesting conversations with someday-advocates last week. I love those conversations; I always learn something from them which I can then bring back to the Alliance and the information we share with members.

And then again, sometimes the questions I hear are the same ones that have cropped up over and over again, including today’s question: Is there insurance reimbursement for the work of an independent advocate?

This time, I’m going to answer that question with a few questions of my own.

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23
APR

advocate finances, allegiance, client services, common sense, decision making, money, patients

health insurance reimbursement

That Very Very Thin Line – Do NOT Be Tom!

Posted by: Trisha Torrey

My husband and I moved two years ago to Florida where we now live in an “active adult” community*. We love it! We’re very happy here. We’ve met and made many new friends – people we have truly come to care about.

I’m following in family footsteps. My parents did the same thing decades ago. They lived in a different city, but they, too, lived in an active adult community for 20+ years.

My father, in a somewhat macabre voice, always called it “God’s Waiting Room.”

And, as I learned again this past week, it turns out that we now live in God’s Waiting Room, too.

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16
APR

advocate best practices, advocate marketing, client services, common sense, decision making, health advocates and navigators, patient advocacy, patient safety, patients

emergencies

Pancakes, Snakes, Red Flags, and Advocacy

Posted by: Trisha Torrey

You don’t have to be a huge fan of Dr. Phil’s to appreciate his delightful and useful sayings. He boils down important and sometimes complex concepts into downhome philosophy that helps us better understand our fellow human beings and our lives.

Today we’re going to focus on one of those sayings to improve our ability to ferret out those clients we should not work with (yes, I said, SHOULD NOT work with):

“No matter how flat you make your pancake, it still has two sides.”

Advocacy stories are like those pancakes. They have at least two sides, too.

I raise this today after an exchange with an APHA member about a disconcerting client experience. That came on the heels of another advocate’s experience where, because of a simple typo on her directory profile, a potential client posted a negative review of her work.

Say what? Let’s look at both stories – and, in pancake style, their flip sides.

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26
FEB

advocacy business, advocacy ethics, advocate bad practices, advocate best practices, client services, common sense, decision making, health advocates and navigators, patient advocacy, patients

The Last Four Myths About Starting an Independent Advocacy Practice

Posted by: Trisha Torrey

This is week 3 of our series, and includes the final four myths about starting, building, and growing an independent patient advocacy or care management practice.

To remind you, these myths are based on the comments I’ve heard from advocates who (I’m sorry to say) failed at getting a practice started, not because they don’t know how to be good advocates (they do!) but because they tried to get started despite their misconceptions about what it would be like to do so.

Here are the final four myths for you to consider, in hopes these misconceptions aren’t yours. Or, if they are, we hope this helps you reconsider, and take steps to be sure they don’t sink your advocacy practice.

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29
JAN

advocacy business, advocacy certification, advocate bad practices, client services, common sense, decision making, health advocates and navigators, patient advocacy, patients, professional standards

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