• Mayo Clinic, Inspire launch ‘Experts by Experience’ series to explore importance of patient narrative

female hands with pen writing on notebook

ROCHESTER, Minn., and ARLINGTON, Va. ─ Mayo Clinic and the Inspire health care social network today launched "Experts by Experience," a new series of articles written by patients and caregivers.

Everyone has a story to tell. It has been well-established that telling one’s narrative helps build hope and connections. “We have long believed that patient and caregiver stories have considerable power to not just improve their own health care experience, but to improve health care overall,” says Farris Timimi, M.D., a Mayo Clinic cardiologist and medical director for the Mayo Clinic Social Media Network, a collaborative learning community and resources for advancing the use of social media in health.

“I’m excited to see this collaboration,” says Dave deBronkart, e-Patient and co-founder of the Society for Participatory Medicine. “Publicizing these true stories will awaken, inform and strengthen people's capacity to partner in their care for themselves and for their families.”

Experts by Experience articles will feature members of Inspire and Mayo Clinic Connect, which are online support communities for patients and caregivers that connect over 1 million people. Contributors to the series have received care from centers and organizations in various health systems around the world.

“The powerful firsthand stories uncover opportunities for quality improvement for health care organizations and providers,” says Brian Loew, CEO of Inspire. “Anyone who is not directly affected by the conditions or experiences described in the articles, such as medical professionals, health service providers, staff, health communicators, health industry professionals and the general public, can gain a much better understanding of the lived experience.”

The articles will appear monthly on the Mayo Clinic Social Media Network and on Inspire.

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About Mayo Clinic Social Media Network
The Mayo Clinic Social Media Network (#MCSMN) improves health globally by accelerating effective application of social media tools across Mayo Clinic, and spurring broader and deeper engagement in social media by hospitals, medical professionals and patients.

About Inspire
Inspire is the leading health care social network, with a mission to accelerate medical progress through a world of connected patients. Partnering with over 100 nonprofit patient advocacy organizations, including the American Lung Association, Ovarian Cancer Research Fund Alliance, Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network, and the Lupus Foundation of America, Inspire creates and manages support communities for more than 1 million patients and caregivers, representing more than 3,600 health conditions.

About Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to clinical practice, education and research, providing expert, comprehensive care to everyone who needs healing. Learn more about Mayo Clinic. Visit the Mayo Clinic News Network.

Media contact:

Lee Aase, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284 5005, newsbureau@mayo.edu