[Why is it increasingly difficult to "do the right thing" and to "stop doing the wrong thing"? Strategies for reversing low-value practices]. / ¿Por qué resulta cada vez más complicado "hacer lo que hay que hacer" y "dejar de hacer lo que no hay que hacer"? Estrategias para revertir las prácticas de bajo valor.

This manuscript describes the factors that have led to the spread of low-value practices (LVP) and the main initiatives to reverse them. The paper highlights the strategies that have proven to be most useful over the years, from the alignment of clinical practice with "do not do" recommendations, to quaternary prevention and the risks associated with interventionism. Reversing LVP requires a planned process with a multifactorial approach engaging the different actors involved. It considers the barriers to de-implementation of low-value interventions and incorporates tools that facilitate adherence to "do not do" recommendations. Family doctor has an especially relevant role in LVP prevention, detection and de-implementation, due to their coordinating and integrating nature in the patients' healthcare, and because most of the citizens' healthcare demands are managed and resolved at the first level of care.

[Patient participation in its own safety]. / La participación del paciente en su seguridad.

Patient-centered approach to care and regulatory advances developed in recent years have promoted patient involvement in decision-making about diagnostic tests and treatments. In other aspects, such as participating in their own safety, there is still a lot to do. Until recently, the patient has been considered as a simple health services receiver, not as an active part of the system, much less as a safety barrier against failures and errors that occur in health care. Some patients have been activated thanks to their experiences. However, many others do not. That is why it is necessary to proactively sensitize, inform and train patients to participate in their own safety. It is not about holding them responsible, but about facilitating and promoting their participation by reinforcing their safety during the care process. The health system must be committed, and the patient informed and trained. We provide tools and online resources to apply in primary care.

[Electronic medical record and prescription: risks and benefits detected since its implementation. Safe designing, rollout and use]. / Historia clínica y receta electrónica: riesgos y beneficios detectados desde su implantación. Diseño, despliegue y usos seguros.

New information technologies have transformed the way care is delivered within health services, permeating almost every aspect of health care. As the complexity of the system increases, it becomes more difficult to work optimally without the assistance of new technologies. Although its implementation represents a breakthrough, either because of the advancement involved in the proper use of any technology in health care, or because of the development of specific applications that improve patient safety, other factors such as incorrect design, implementation and poor maintenance, inadequate training, along with overconfidence and dependency, can make technologies compromise patient safety. This article describes the beneficial effects, and those that are not so, of the introduction in our country of the electronic medical record and the electronic prescription on the healthcare quality and safety.

¿Por qué resulta cada vez más complicado "hacer lo que hay que hacer" y "dejar de hacer lo que no hay que hacer"? Estrategias para revertir las prácticas de bajo valor / Why is it increasingly difficult to "do the right thing" and to "stop doing the wrong thing"? Strategies for reversing low-value practices

En este trabajo se describen los factores que han propiciado la expansión de las prácticas de bajo valor (PBV) junto con las principales iniciativas para revertirlas. El artículo destaca las estrategias que han demostrado ser más útiles a lo largo de los años, desde la adecuación de la práctica clínica a las recomendaciones “no hacer”, pasando por la prevención cuaternaria y el abordaje de los riesgos asociados al intervencionismo. Revertir las PBV requiere un proceso planificado con un enfoque multifactorial que involucre a los diferentes agentes implicados. Además ha de tener en cuenta las barreras que dificultan la desimplementación de las PBV e incorpore las herramientas que facilitan la adherencia a las recomendaciones “no hacer”. El papel del médico de familia es especialmente relevante en la prevención, detección y desimplementación de las PBV, por su carácter coordinador e integrador de la atención que reciben los pacientes, y porque en el primer nivel asistencial se gestionan y resuelven la mayor parte de las demandas asistenciales.(AU)

This manuscript describes the factors that have led to the spread of low-value practices (LVP) and the main initiatives to reverse them. The paper highlights the strategies that have proven to be most useful over the years, from the alignment of clinical practice with “do not do” recommendations, to quaternary prevention and the risks associated with interventionism. Reversing LVP requires a planned process with a multifactorial approach engaging the different actors involved. It considers the barriers to de-implementation of low-value interventions and incorporates tools that facilitate adherence to “do not do” recommendations. Family doctor has an especially relevant role in LVP prevention, detection and de-implementation, due to their coordinating and integrating nature in the patients’ healthcare, and because most of the citizens’ healthcare demands are managed and resolved at the first level of care.(AU)

Modelo participativo de comunicación en salud: el caso del Centro Penitenciario Álava / Participatory health communication model: the case of Alava Penitentiary Centre

Mejorar el estado de salud de la población general no es tarea fácil. Hacerlo en el caso de colectivos desfavorecidos es aún más complicado. Presentamos una intervención inédita de educación para la salud desarrollada en el Centro Penitenciario Araba/Álava mediante una estrategia de comunicación altamente eficaz y eficiente. Con acciones informativas sencillas, vehiculizadas por un canal de comunicación existente, se ha conseguido mejorar la adherencia a la medicación de la población reclusa. El Programa «Tu medicación te aporta un plus», desarrollado en un contexto de escasez de recursos y dirigido a un target de población con necesidades complejas, se ha retroalimentado a través de la participación de las personas reclusas y está plenamente implantado, con una trayectoria de más de 3 años. Detallamos su puesta en marcha y los resultados obtenidos, especialmente el impacto en la salud mental y calidad de vida de la población reclusa. Aportamos una estrategia de comunicación y educación en salud de bajo coste, que promueve el empoderamiento individual y colectivo, y es válido y aplicable tanto en el ámbito penitenciario como en otros contextos comunitarios: centros educativos, sociales y sanitarios. El objetivo del estudio es mejorar la salud y la calidad de vida de las personas reclusas a través de un programa de intervención adaptado a sus características y necesidades

Improving the health of the general population is not an easy task. In the case of disadvantaged groups it is even more complicated. We report an unprecedented health education intervention carried out at Araba/Álava Prison Centre by means of a highly effective and efficient communication strategy. With simple explanatory actions, conveyed by an existing communication channel, it was possible to improve the prison population's medication adherence. "Your medication gives you a plus" Programme, carried out against a backdrop of scarcity of resources and targeted at a population with complex needs, has been fed back through the participation of inmates and has been fully implemented over more than three years. We outline implementation of the programme and its results, especially the impact on mental health and quality of life of the prison population. We provide a low-cost health education and communication strategy, which promotes individual and group empowerment, and is valid and applicable both in the prison setting and in other community contexts: educational, social and health centres