Having worked in health care for twenty-seven years, both overseas and in Australia, I have found that successful patient engagement occurs with active patient involvement.

Familial hypercholesterolaemia, an inherited genetic disorder which can cause high cholesterol and lead to premature cardiovascular disease is not a diagnosis that occurs overnight. It’s a process involving screening, diagnosis, treatment, and on-going monitoring of the individual and their affected family members.  Patient engagement is vital for this journey to happen successfully.

We, as clinicians, go on this FH journey with our patients. Some patient journeys are smooth, uncomplicated with positive outcomes including adherence to lipid lowering therapies, and pro-active engagement with their clinicians both at specialist and GP levels. Other patient journeys can be a bit bumpier typically due to clinical disengagement, fear of the outcome, poor adherence to medication, and time-poor busy lives.

We are here to make everyone’s FH journey as successful as possible, with our patients at the centre of the shared decision-making process. We value and promote joint decision making, open communication, empowerment and involvement, and strive for high quality care delivered by an experienced team who have tremendous compassion, empathy and understanding.

Your FH family is our FH family…. we care for our patients as if they were our relatives, extending a handshake, high-five, or a hug (my favourite).