Episode 31: Patient Centered Plan of Care Development (SOAP Series #4)

In this episode, we finish with part 4 of the SOAP note series: Plan of Care & Prognosis. Often the plan of care is an afterthought, something we consider when documenting or perhaps the last 5 minutes of the evaluation when we schedule follow-up visits. So we asked ourselves “How do we form a mutually agreed-upon plan, which is realistic and considerate of the patient and the provider?” 

We share the tips which have helped us create more collaborative plans with patients and the assumptions and fears which have gotten in the way. Our own fears and psychosocial factors can affect the way we develop and show up for the plan of care. At the same time, we realize from this episode that there are so many ways to connect with patients to create a meaningful plan. We hope you enjoy this wrap-up of the SOAP series and would love to hear your thoughts on creating a patient-centered plan of care! 

Highlights from our conversation in Episode 31

• (0:34) Introduction 
• (0:52) Presenting the plan as an array of options for the patient 
• (3:24) How do we get people to invest in the plan?
• (7:05) Assessing readiness to change 
• (7:58) Centering the patient within the plan 
• (10:50) Redefining a successful plan of care 
• (14:03) Understanding the patient’s goals and gauging their participation
• (18:37) Do we have the physical, emotional, and spiritual space to support this person throughout their plan?
• (22:05) Moving past our own fears to create a collaborative plan 

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Resources from Episode 31

• (6:22) Episode 2: The Mountain Metaphor for a Healing Journey 
• (7:16) Episode 3: Identifying Patient's Readiness to Change
• (14:11) Episode 6: History Taking Pearls & Pitfalls
• (23:12) Episode 27: Evolving Pelvic Physical Therapy Practice with Meryl Alapattu, DPT, Ph.D. 

Missed an episode in the series? 

• Episode 28: Taking a Patient-Centered History (SOAP Series #1)
• Episode 29: Performing A Conscious Clinical Exam (SOAP Series #2)
• Episode 30: Empowering Assessments (SOAP Series #3)  

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