Effective financial counseling and resource referral improve patients' access to medicine and adherence

Patient Support Programs (PSPs)

        Through PatientsForce's Patient Support Programs (PSPs), program health educators provide not only disease and medication education and psychological support—for economically disadvantaged patients and their families, they also offer appropriate financial counseling and resource referral as part of case management across the entire patient journey, ensuring patients can access drug treatment and maintain medication adherence.

Here are some examples from PSPs run by PatientsForce:

Insurance benefit estimation service

       In a cancer counseling program, a PatientsForce counselor shared the story of a patient who, just as she was savoring the joy of pregnancy, was diagnosed with breast cancer. While still learning how to be an expectant mother and care for her soon-to-arrive newborn, she was suddenly forced to confront urgent cancer treatment and its financial burden. To ease her drug costs, the counselor used policy consultation and benefit estimation services to help her better understand her insurance coverage, and she successfully claimed medical insurance reimbursement for her cancer medication—allowing her to undergo treatment and await delivery with peace of mind throughout her pregnancy.

Providing care resources

       In a rare disease program in hematology-oncology run by PatientsForce, statistics showed that nearly 60% of patients came from economically disadvantaged families. Through a value-added care program in partnership with the pharmaceutical company—even though the patients' medication was covered by the NHI—health educators helped patients apply for a range of support resources based on their needs, in order to further improve medication adherence. These included transportation to and from monthly follow-up visits, arranging home-nursing staff to administer injections at home, and even regular rehabilitation or physical therapy, all free of charge, giving patients better care throughout their treatment.

Financial resource referral

        A patient's family support network is equally indispensable. A PatientsForce program health educator once served a rare disease patient with a disability certificate whose cognitive ability was that of a five- to six-year-old and who was entirely unable to care for herself. Her father, fully paralyzed, had been placed in a care facility, leaving her mother as the sole caregiver. Over several follow-up visits, the educator learned that the mother faced a substantial surgery bill for a herniated thoracic disc, and that caring for the patient had left her without a stable income. Through the educator's resource referral, the family successfully received a one-time financial subsidy, resolving the sudden economic pressure.

        PatientsForce health educators come to understand patients' needs through their service, then use effective financial communication and resource referral to help patients and their families reduce financial pressure and stay on treatment. This is a demonstration of PatientsForce's long-standing patient-centered values—ensuring that every patient we serve can receive better medical care and treatment on a stable financial footing.

─ Chien-Hsiu Kuo, Deputy Director, PSS Strategic Management Division, PatientsForce, Media-WIND Health Group (MWHG)