Self-care and self-management have huge potential to improve patient outcomes and ease pressure on services. However, the challenges are often inflated and misunderstood. These misconceptions can create barriers for clinicians, making it feel like an uphill battle to implement the model effectively.

Self-care myths can also be conflicting! For example, viewing it as a model that adds to clinical workload burden while also seeing it as something that might put clinicians out of a job.

We caught up with self-management expert Stephanie Lowen to understand the common challenges she’s seen in adopting the model. Let’s tackle some of the most common self-care myths head-on and explore what it really means—not just for patients, but for your day-to-day work as a clinician.

Myth 1: Self-care means abandoning patients

Reality: It allows patients to live fuller, more independent lives with appropriate clinical oversight.

Self-care is about supporting independence, not leaving patients without guidance. It’s a partnership—working with patients to help them achieve their goals, whether that’s going back to bingo or spending more time on hobbies or with loved ones.

It might mean checking in weekly rather than daily, but it’s still guided care, just in a way that promotes patient independence.

It’s about enabling patients to live independently while we maintain oversight.

— Stephanie Lowen

Myth 2: It leaves less-able patients behind

Reality: Self-management creates more clinical capacity for those who need more support.

With any practice, it’s important to address health inequalities and make sure no one is left behind.

Empowering the patients who can self-care to do so actually leaves more clinical capacity to focus on those who are less able and need more support.

But much of the time, even those who are less able benefit greatly from the support and guidance to live more independently. Regular in-person care will always remain a vital part of patient treatment. Self-management is about enhancing it, not taking it away.

Myth 3: Self-care increases the risk of something going wrong

Reality: The risk is always there, but it’s lower when patients know how to care for themselves.

Sometimes, things do go wrong—with or without clinical oversight. But it’s incredibly powerful for patients to know what to do and when to reach out for help when things do go wrong.

Having the right digital tools to support and enable care can also help with this concern. Because you can say, “take a picture, send it in, and we can review it without going back into your house.” This means action can be taken instantly.

In our recent interview with Steph, she shared a great story about a gentleman whose wound deteriorated when he was self-caring. However, because he knew his own plan and understood what he needed to do, he was able to reach out to his healthcare providers and get support before it became a problem. Read the full story here.

Myth 4: Patients don’t want the responsibility

Reality: Patients are often ready and willing to manage their own care.

The view that patients aren’t ready or don’t want the responsibility of managing their own care is not true in practice. In fact, most patients crave the independence to take control of their health. And with the right support, they can thrive.

As Steph shares in HTN’s self-care webinar, she’s seen firsthand how empowering patients to manage certain aspects of their care can boost their confidence and improve their well-being. A lot of the time they’re also missing their freedom and feeling trapped within routine home visits.

Even when patients might be worried, it’s about providing them with the right support and guidance to see that they can. It’s not about giving them more to do, it’s about giving them the tools and support to do it for themselves.

Myth 5: It’s just a way to discharge patients and reduce workload

Reality: It’s about smarter care, not less care.

Self-management lets you, as a clinician, focus on the bigger picture and where you have the most impact while staying connected to your patients.

Patients who are self-caring are not discharged from the caseload, they continue to have regular check-ins. However, sometimes those check-ins are virtual or less frequent. They can happen as needed, rather than based on a predetermined schedule which can end up missing deterioration and other concerns.

Ultimately, with self-management, patients have the knowledge and autonomy to understand when they need help and they can ask for that support before their condition worsens.

Myth 6: Self-management adds extra workload burden

Reality: It’s a shift in the way you already work, it doesn’t add extra tasks.

Self-management is not about adding tasks, it’s about shifting how you communicate in small ways. Steph calls this the light bulb moment, when you realise it’s not about doing more but doing things differently.

Myth 7: It puts clinicians out of a job

Reality: There will always be impactful patient care to focus on, self-care gives you more capacity to choose.

The opposite of the concern above is also far from true! Steph put it best in our recent interview:

Trust me, we have enough people coming through the doors with so many new things that we’ll never be out of a job! But it just may mean that we actually enjoy our job a little bit more, and we do the things that we came into the NHS for, and we’re making a difference every day without going home feeling exhausted ourselves.

— Stephanie Lowen

Myth 8: Self-care only works for certain clinical tasks

Reality: If a task is safe for a patient or their family to manage, it can work.

It’s about empowering patients to take ownership of their care. Whether it’s handling wound dressing changes on holiday or managing day-to-day tasks with clinical guidance.

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We have covered the top 8 self-care myths! In reality, self-care is about helping patients to live fuller lives while enabling clinicians to focus on making an impact where it counts most. With the right tools and support, it’s a win for everyone.

You can explore our recent interview with Steph for more insights and practical guidance on implementing self-management into your practice.

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