I've posted about this topic before. It seems doctors and their staff are not well trained in the art of eloquence. They tend to tell us what to do and are missing the gene that requires them to explain. Case in point, last week my father went in for an MRI of his hip/leg which has been bothering him for several years now. After arriving home, he was called with an urgent request to drop everything and rush back to the hospital because they found something unrelated that they were concerned about. No time to say hello, goodbye, you're late, you're late, you're late!!
He raced back down there where they did all sorts of tests and told him to stay to talk to the specialist who would tell him what needed to be done and how fast. My father, at this point, just wanted to go home and asked if he could see the specialist the next day. He was told that was fine, but they wanted to see him "right away."
He never did hear from the specialist so he called and was told that the earliest appointment he could get with the specialist was two weeks out. What happened to "right away?" Aside from the fact that the office didn't have any of his paperwork, they seemed unconcerned.
First they scare him half to death and have him rush down, do not pass go, do not collect $200. Next, they tell him he HAS to be seen right away. Then suddenly, it's not so urgent. We wondered if it wasn't so urgent because they looked at his tests or it wasn't so urgent because they had no idea who he was or what he had. Either way, it would have been nice if someone had told us (him) and eased his concerns.
Aside from the confusion of the communication from the doctor to patient was the confusion that took place each of the MANY times he talked to the doctor's office to straighten this out. Why is it so difficult for most doctors and doctor's offices to relay proper information to their patients? When you are dealing with people's health, shouldn't it be a priority to keep them properly informed so that a dire situation doesn't turn deadly and a benign situation doesn't needlessly worry a patient?
Now before I get hate mail from people who know a doctor who does take the time and whose staff does do a good job of this, let me say I understand that there are exceptions, but in my experience, many doctors and doctor's offices are in grave need of learning communication skills. In fact, I read an article several years back where the AMA suggested that doctors and staff learn to communicate well as a way of cutting down on malpractice suits. It stated that many, if not most, of the lawsuits were filed not because the doctor messed up someone's treatment, but because they failed to explain things effectively to their patients.
In my study, Say What You Mean Every Day, there is a chapter called, "Doctor! Doctor!" where I discuss this very issue. Visit the product page to learn more about this study and to download our free sample excerpts (link at bottom of page) with a part of that chapter!
What's your experience with doctor/patient communication? Please share your experiences.
If you liked this post, please subscribe to our RSS feed and share the link…
Doctors Talk, But They Don't Often Communicate
I've posted about this topic before. It seems doctors and their staff are not well trained in the art of eloquence. They tend to tell us what to do and are missing the gene that requires them to explain. Case in point, last week my father went in for an MRI of his hip/leg which has been bothering him for several years now. After arriving home, he was called with an urgent request to drop everything and rush back to the hospital because they found something unrelated that they were concerned about. No time to say hello, goodbye, you're late, you're late, you're late!!
He raced back down there where they did all sorts of tests and told him to stay to talk to the specialist who would tell him what needed to be done and how fast. My father, at this point, just wanted to go home and asked if he could see the specialist the next day. He was told that was fine, but they wanted to see him "right away."
He never did hear from the specialist so he called and was told that the earliest appointment he could get with the specialist was two weeks out. What happened to "right away?" Aside from the fact that the office didn't have any of his paperwork, they seemed unconcerned.
First they scare him half to death and have him rush down, do not pass go, do not collect $200. Next, they tell him he HAS to be seen right away. Then suddenly, it's not so urgent. We wondered if it wasn't so urgent because they looked at his tests or it wasn't so urgent because they had no idea who he was or what he had. Either way, it would have been nice if someone had told us (him) and eased his concerns.
Aside from the confusion of the communication from the doctor to patient was the confusion that took place each of the MANY times he talked to the doctor's office to straighten this out. Why is it so difficult for most doctors and doctor's offices to relay proper information to their patients? When you are dealing with people's health, shouldn't it be a priority to keep them properly informed so that a dire situation doesn't turn deadly and a benign situation doesn't needlessly worry a patient?
Now before I get hate mail from people who know a doctor who does take the time and whose staff does do a good job of this, let me say I understand that there are exceptions, but in my experience, many doctors and doctor's offices are in grave need of learning communication skills. In fact, I read an article several years back where the AMA suggested that doctors and staff learn to communicate well as a way of cutting down on malpractice suits. It stated that many, if not most, of the lawsuits were filed not because the doctor messed up someone's treatment, but because they failed to explain things effectively to their patients.
In my study, Say What You Mean Every Day, there is a chapter called, "Doctor! Doctor!" where I discuss this very issue. Visit the product page to learn more about this study and to download our free sample excerpts (link at bottom of page) with a part of that chapter!
What's your experience with doctor/patient communication? Please share your experiences.
If you liked this post, please subscribe to our RSS feed and share the link…
13 comments
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Sounds like the Army, hurry up and wait! You know I’ve been dealing with my mom in the hospital, rehab, hospital, etc. It is sooooooooooooo frustrating! We pay for insurance and I have to do most of the “legwork” myself. I have to do the research, which kind of upsets me. But what upsets me worse is that I get a different answer from everybody concerned. The medical people tell me one thing (sometimes the same thing, but not often). Then the administration folks tell me something else and tell me the docs should not have spoken ‘cuz they don’t know insurance law. Then the docs start about how no accountant is telling them how to practice medicine (wanna bet?) In the meantime, my head is spinning, my mother is still laying in that bed and I have no idea which end is up. And then, when you do what they tell you to do, you can’t get them back on the phone for days! This is only the tip of the iceberg. They need more than your book, JoJo. They need you in their pocket!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I’ve been praying for your mom and for you as you deal with everything needed. This is a HUGE issue for so many! My mom and I were talking the other day about how important communication skills are, how society as a whole has declined in their communication skills and how it affects every area of our every day lives. I’d love to take this message to folks on a grand scale. It needs to be addressed for the health of so many people rely on it.
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My family and I have had many terrifying and disheartening doctor and hospital visits over the years, too. Just recently, my son was the patient. It took the ER two days to realize he had pneumonia, in spite of so many ‘red flags,’ that I later realized from researching it on the internet afterward. I was with him most of the visits. I finally noticed his cough sounded different, and his skin under his fingernails was blue! [Add to that a test result of ‘elevated white cell count,’ mental confusion, shaking…] At that point, on the 2nd day in ER, the doctor ‘thanked me’ for making them aware. I could only think, “Isn’t this what YOU are supposed to be aware of?” Apparently, part of the difficulty was my that my son, being a young man, didn’t fit the doctor’s idea of someone with pneumonia?
I must say, my experience has been that some doctors not only need education in communicating with patients/families, but in some cases, anyway, need to have a ‘heart installed.’ Wouldn’t call it a ‘transplant’ because that gives the impression that they had a heart originally.
[Sorry, but, these memories can be bitter to me…over the past 20 years I cared for my mother and my husband…hospital experiences were not good, because of certain doctors.]
Communication is critical in every phase of life. When we understand someone, there is a ‘connection,’ whether that person is a friend, a stranger or a doctor. Just that connection can be healing, I believe. Lack of it with one’s doctor can be fatal. -
(((Janet)))
I understand your frustration. Poor communication can result in a ruined relationship, but in doctor/patient communication, it’s much more serious. I don’t think it’s that most doctors don’t have a heart for their patients, but that they have NO EARTHLY IDEA how to express that. Combined with a lack of communication skills to properly inform or diagnose a patient, this is a deadly combination. -
Amazing. my mom had cervical cancer and evidently lung cancer which spread to her brain. Docs never told me what symptoms to look for. I could have had her back in time for them to do something about it. The GYN cancer specialist cured the cervical cancer. But we never were referred to a cancer specialist for the lung cancer just a surgeon. Who always seemed surprised for the year my mom went back for checkups but never said anything except more radiation therapy which is what I’m sure in hindsight spread it to her brain.
I think part of th e reason they don’t talk any more is because they all depend on testing now and no gut instinct. They have no feeling for anything anymore
Many other thing happen over the years. Dec 23 soninlaw was hit on his bike by a car the team was great until this last checkup a few weeks ago. they were only supposed to see the same doc someone forgot to note on the door new doc came in and just grabbed his wrist without saying and started turning this way and that and hurt him. never said hardly anything. the original doc stuck his head int eh door said hi and was going to leave and my daughter says wait we have questions. he stayed but clearly didn’t want to. Until that day they loved that doc and the staff. in 10 minutes they blew the whole thing.