Dr. Jean Mesidor
Florida State University College of Medicine - FloridaAssistant Clinical Professor
I envision a healthier community through integrated health services. As a clinical health psychologist, I believe these services are critical in addressing the mind-body needs, decreasing stigma associated with mental health, promoting health prevention and reducing health disparity.
How do you envision your role and your mission within healthcare?
I envision a healthier community through integrated health services. As a clinical health psychologist, I believe these services are critical in addressing the mind-body needs, decreasing stigma associated with mental health, promoting health prevention and reducing health disparity.
What is something that you are proud of in your work?
FSUCOM’s mission is to “educate and develop exemplary physicians who practice patient-centered health care, discover and advance knowledge, and are responsive to community needs, especially through service to elder, rural, minority, and underserved populations,” I’m proud to contribute to this mission as part of a primary care team that serves the health care needs of a migrant, agricultural farm working community in Immokalee, Florida.
What do you like best about your role as an Assistant Clinical Professor at the Florida State University College of Medicine (FSUCOM)?
I really like working with clients from diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds and socio-economic groups. Being an Assistant Clinical Professor at the FSUCOM allows me to teach and train medical students and postdoctoral psychology fellows in the biopsychosocial-spiritual model in order to better understand chronic disease management and behavioral health issues that our diverse racial/ethnic patients experience.
How do you initiate advance care planning conversations?
This conversation is initiated with the patient’s primary care provider (PCP). During a warm hand-off, the PCP introduces the patient to the behavioral health provider, who will further discuss advance care planning. The conversation starts with a statement like: “As we go through different stages in life, it is important to plan what type of medical treatments we would like to receive or would not want to receive if we became very sick.”
What are the biggest challenges to implementing advance care planning with patients?
I have found the biggest challenges to be personal health beliefs, lack of insurance coverage for counseling services and transportation difficulties.
How do you feel advance care planning impacts patient care?
Advance care planning has significant impacts in patients’ care. It empowers the patients, as they feel they have a voice in the decision-making process. It also helps address some fundamental existential and spiritual questions about human experience and end-of-life issues.
How did you learn about ACP Decisions?
I learned about ACP Decisions through a presentation at work.
How does your (team, organization) use the ACP Decisions video library?
We use the ACP Decisions website to help our patients understand advance care planning and to facilitate communication with their PCP, family and loved ones. The behavioral health providers are given access to the online video library. They view the videos with their patients. We sometimes assign the patients with homework to watch a video with their family.
What have you learned from working with ACP Decisions?
I have learned that the ACP Decisions videos meet the needs of our patients. The videos are very informative and interactive. They provide information on the importance of advance care planning and assist patients with communicating wishes to their PCP and family members.
