The importance of patient education

  According to the World Health Organization, the incidence of rheumatic diseases is increasing year by year, and China alone has more than 50 million.  This is a very complex disease, and most people know very little about it. Coupled with the vicious propaganda of various charlatans and false drug advertisements, a large number of patients miss diagnosis, misdiagnosis, or spend a lot of money but still do not receive reasonable diagnosis and treatment.  Some inaccurate information even “demonizes” rheumatism, equating it with cancer, which brings great psychological pressure to patients and their families.  Even if they are treated in regular hospitals, many patients are unable to cooperate well with doctors because they know too little about the disease and drugs, or they do not pay enough attention to the details of life, which makes treatment more difficult or even fails.  More and more facts show that guiding patients to seek proper medical treatment, strengthening their correct understanding of their disease, looking scientifically at the efficacy and side effects of medications, and promoting quick recovery through daily health care and physical exercise are all very important for disease control and prognosis.  In foreign countries, patient education is listed as the first step of disease treatment. In order to serve you better, our department has opened a science bulletin board to introduce general knowledge of various diseases, and welcome all patients to visit and understand; meanwhile, our department has also printed some disease-related science knowledge, which can be brought home for you to read carefully.