Realistic Medicine and Value Based Health and Care Casebook

Introduction

As we seek to renew our health and care system, we cannot afford to waste resources and time – our own time and that of the people we care for. We cannot afford to deliver low value, or futile care.

Realistic Medicine promotes a personalised approach to care that prioritises shared decision making, reducing harm and waste, and delivering care that truly matters to people. It is now widely accepted as the way we should deliver care in Scotland – not just a “nice-to-do” but the way in which all health and care professionals ought to deliver care. The majority of you agree that it has had a positive influence on your practice. The majority of you also recognise the positive influence that Realistic Medicine has had on healthcare in Scotland over the last year.

By practising Realistic Medicine we can find ways to achieve the outcomes that matter most to people. It is about making evidence based choices on how we use the resources we have at our disposal. It is about listening to and supporting the people we care for to make informed choices about the care that is right for them.

This Casebook showcases some of the finest examples of Realistic Medicine in action. These case studies illustrate how practising Realistic Medicine delivers careful and kind care. They illustrate the widespread practice of personalised care that’s taking place across Scotland today. They illustrate how Realistic Medicine is helping to reduce waste and harm, manage risk, improve equity of access to care and reduce unwarranted variation. They demonstrate the positive impact in improving outcomes for the people we care for and for our system.

We hope you enjoy reading about the positive outcomes that practising Realistic Medicine is having across Scotland, and will be proud, as we are, of the passion and commitment of our innovative colleagues who are delivering Value Based Health and Care.

We would be delighted if you would share your own case studies with the Realistic Medicine team with a view to including them in future editions. There can be no doubt that as it grows, the Casebook will become an invaluable tool in demonstrating the impact Realistic Medicine is having on outcomes and the positive difference it is making across all professions and care settings in Scotland.