Patient driven care is an idea whose time has come. Some years ago, I read an amazing book about patient empowerment, "Making Miracles Happen." Every day, I see patients who need to be partners with their physicians, but can't conceive of doing that or are not given the opportunity. This is especially true for the elderly. Ideally, the patient, not the doctor, should be "captain of the ship."
Yesterday, on TED, I watched an amazing video on ePatients (18 minutes). Viewing this will empower you or help you to empower a family member or friend.
The ePatient network is growing.
The Society for Participatory Medicine
Interternational Journal for User Driven Health Care
Institute for Healthcare Improvement
This is just for starters. There is much more...