Introduction

The mission of Patient Education Research and Development Initiative is to create an advanced media learning environment to help patients understand the complexity of their care in a simplified, yet highly-customized form. Focusing on the conception, production, and dissemination of interactive, contextual, and visually-rich educational multimedia, the initiative aims to augment traditional patient education resources currently provided within medical institutions.

The Patient Education Research and Development Initiative is an active collaboration between the NYU Cancer Institute, the NYU Department of Surgery, and NYU Medical School’s Department of Advanced Educational Systems (AES).

The Initiative began in 2003, when an inter-departmental team sought an opportunity to leverage the medical expertise of the institution, the larger university support network, and the creative talent of AES for spearheading new terrain in patient-centered learning.

Our primary research questions are:

• What is the impact of an advanced learning environment on a patient’s life? Does it improve a patient’s medical and/or psychological well-being?

• Does an advanced learning environment improve the quality of face-to-face communication between patients, families, and their health care providers?

• Does this environment encourage patients and families to be more active in their care and better equipped to handle their illness?

This Learning Resource is Funded by:
Stephen E. Banner Fund for Lung Cancer Research
NYU Department of Surgery
New York University School of Medicine