摘要：In a rapidly changing world of health care information access and patients’ rights, there is limited conceptual infrastructure available to understand how people approach and engage in treatment of medical conditions. The construct of health care empowerment is defined as the process and state of being engaged, informed, collaborative, committed, and tolerant of uncertainty regarding health care. I present a model in which health care empowerment is influenced by an interplay of cultural, social, and environmental factors; personal resources; and intrapersonal factors. The model offers a framework to understand patient and provider roles in facilitating health care empowerment and presents opportunities for investigation into the role of health care empowerment in multiple outcomes across populations and settings, including inquiries into the sources and consequences of health disparities. Navigating health care systems and treatment options has become increasingly complicated and demanding for patients facing health care challenges. The proliferation of online health information and the expanded use of electronic health records have vastly increased the volume of available health information and the speed at which it is communicated; however, the human capacity to digest, interpret, and act on such information in an efficient manner has not evolved as quickly. The result is a risk of disconnect from one's health care, which is particularly pronounced if one is limited in resources such as health insurance, and if one does not possess the skills or means to access and evaluate online health information. In essence, the exponential progress made to date in the pursuit of electronic health platforms has the potential to further marginalize those populations who have traditionally been on the wrong side of health disparities. Persons from communities of low socioeconomic status with lower education and literacy are often disproportionately represented by racial and ethnic minorities. Individuals who will most likely benefit from the advances in health care technologies are those who have always garnered the greatest advantage, while leaving the rest behind. This essay seeks to introduce the concept of health care empowerment and propose a model whereby health care empowerment is determined by a complex interplay of psychosocial and environmental factors. The model was designed to organize previously disconnected lines of research and to direct them toward the new construct of health care empowerment. The overarching goal of this conceptualization is to stimulate research and clinical awareness of factors that can enable or inhibit the optimization of treatment outcomes across populations and medical conditions.
