This week’s newsmaker, Dutch Liver Patients Association President Jose Willemse, joins Roger Green to discuss the patient screening program at this year’s EASL Congress, which took place in Amsterdam, and the general idea of what constitutes a patient-sensitive dialogue.
Jose describes the phenomenal level of interest in the screening activity, in which hepatologists and APPs scanned 400 people per day for MASLD and MASH. Boosted by significant mass publicity in Amsterdam, the number of people seeking screening exceeded the 400/day quota, with some arriving in line hours before the scheduled start time and others traveling for hours to reach the site. Jose believes that with adequate publicity, efforts like these could be replicated around the world, but that the healthcare system lacks the necessary resources to do so. In terms of physician-patient dialogues, Jose emphasized the importance of sensitive yet frank conversations and helping patients appreciate the successes they are achieving.