Pfizer:
Health coach comes to the rescue

How to convince a 40-something man with Type 2 diabetes, no taste for vegetables and exercise to change his ways?

Pfizer Oy and Päijät-Häme hospital district in Southern Finland set up a self-care project, in which the 'hopeless' patient with chronic and costly conditions receives health and wellbeing coaching from a personal health coach.

"The health coach, who typically is an experienced nurse, keeps close contact with the trainee via telephone calls, which complement traditional visits to the doctor. This model has been in successful use in the U.K., for instance, and the results showed an improvement in the customers' general health, and visits to GPs and specialists have decreased," says Mikko Vasama, strategic development director at Pfizer Finland.

The two-year project launched in 2007 covers 1,500 citizens, and comprises in addition to traditional care - visits to primary healthcare provider, medication - regular over-the-phone discussions between the coach and the customer.

The idea is gently to guide patients into a more proactive and independent mode: the health coaches are using behavioural models to motivate the customer to adopt healthier lifestyles.

Markers such as blood pressure and blood sugar levels are monitored, and the coach gives practical suggestions and advice to help the patient change possible harmful habits and attitudes.

Vasama says that Finland was selected as the next test market for the Pfizer solution for a number of reasons: the size of the population and target group was ideal, back-up and commitment by the cooperation partners solid and the level of "IT-savvyness" of the people high.

The results are expected to emerge within the next few years. The first step is that the project participants become aware of their lifestyle and understand that healthy choices bring increased wellbeing.

As this awareness grows, active health-promotion measures take place: it's easier to stop smoking or loose weight and visits to GPs and specialists diminish. The actual cost-savings occur at this stage.

The story was first published in Tekes' publication Passion for Life - Join the pioneers of healthcare (pdf)