Benefits of patient knowledge revealed

When patients receive information on how to manage their condition, nearly two thirds make proactive changes in their behaviour based on this information. This is the conclusion drawn by a major new study of patients in Europe and the US commissioned by Pfizer.

Furthermore, it showed that more than three quarters of those who change their behaviour perceive a positive impact on their health.

The survey, conducted between June and September 2004, also revealed that more than half of all patients in Europe feel they do not know enough about their disease and its treatments to confidently manage their health, and most of those are also concerned that their lack of knowledge might be exacerbating their condition.

The research gathered the views and experiences of 4,500 patients from eight European countries, and was devised to explore levels of health information received by patients suffering from three chronic diseases: asthma; adult onset (type 2) diabetes and heart disease.

On the whole, across all three disease areas, US patients displayed greater knowledge of their conditions. Additionally, there were significant differences in knowledge levels across countries within Europe, with 43% of UK diabetes patients displaying "excellent" knowledge of their condition, but only 23% of Italian, 17% of German, 15% of Spanish and 4% of Polish patients showing the same extent of knowledge.

To obtain health information European patients use a wider array of sources, including pharmacists, newspapers, TV and radio, books on health and the internet, while in the US 90% of respondents continue to use doctors and nurses as their main source of health information.