Self-Management Education Approach: Engaging Patients in Creating a Personal and Relevant Action Plan (Part 2): I Keep Telling Patients What to Do, So Why Don't They Make Progress?

Abstract

THIS IS THE final part of the selfmanagement education approach 2-part series. An essential component of selfmanagement education is the patient-clinician collaborative creation of a self-management action plan. An action plan is simply a written document that records what a patient is willing to do in the immediate short term to manage their health, such as a specific health behavior change. Action plans include a specific short term goal, or action step, along with a rating of confidence in one’s ability to achieve that goal (e.g., 0 5 not at all confident; 105 very confident). Goals that are rated below a 7 should be discussed and perhaps refined to enhance the confidence for change. Action plans that are set with a higher level of confidence have been associated with behavior change. Because action plans involve goal-setting, it is important to note the existence of over 35 years of goal setting science. Goal setting studies originated in the workplace, but goal-setting has become common in health