Patient education articles from across Nature Portfolio

The lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and asexual (LGBTQIA+) community navigates a complex social landscape marked by strides in acceptance alongside enduring discrimination. Allies — individuals outside of the LGBTQIA+ spectrum who support and advocate for this community — are paramount, with allyship playing a critical part in influencing the health and well-being of LGBTQIA+ individuals.

A deficit-oriented approach to describing living with schizophrenia obscures the challenges affected individuals face in being understood by others. Though symptoms of the illness complicate the development of a robust narrative self, patients still seek meaningful dialogue, and provider attitudes and practices can foster this narrative voice.

Early evidence suggests psychedelics could help alleviate end-of-life anxiety and depression. Yet there has been little study or discussion of their integration into hospice and palliative care settings, where patients often have complex comorbidities and medication regimens. The authors discuss relevant clinical challenges and approaches.

As result of the pandemic-related increase in telehealth and the 21st Century Cures Act, technology is playing an increasing role in healthcare. This has led to organizational investments in the “digital front door” of healthcare. The promise that these technologies can revolutionize care by better connecting us to our patients, overcoming analog barriers to care, and addressing health disparities is grounded in “techno-optimism.” We advocate for organizational leaders to inform their digital health equity strategies with a balanced measure of “techno-skepticism”, grounded in implementation science, that can ensure alignment between health technology and health equity.