If is also important for patients to learn as much as possible about the subject pre-visit. If you are comfortable asking you may find that your doctor’s office will be able to help you by sending printed information to you ahead of time. Because time together is precious for both parties, it is essential that patients learn to state their problems and symptoms concisely, and also whenever possible to use vocabulary which is clinical in nature. Learning to communicate by using medical terms also will help to lessen your difficulty in talking about uncomfortable topics by both increasing your confidence that you are communicating and providing you with stigma-free wording.
Much is written about patient rights, but in order to foster goodwill and better communications with your healthcare provider it is important to recognize that as a patient we all have responsibilities too. You have a responsibility to: provide complete and accurate information; to follow the treatment option agreed upon or to notify your physician you did not begin or have discontinued the prescribed treatment; and to always ask the questions you need answered in order to clarify your knowledge about your condition. Although these things may sound simple, they become more challenging when dealing with topics which you may find embarrassing.
Because difficulty in discussing certain issues is not by any means one-sided, doctors and nurses may struggle with various topics also; often professionals find a topic uncomfortable because of their own expectation of being able to provide help, and the questions you are raising may be on a topic which they lack expertise or solutions. It is important that patients learn to recognize an unacceptable medical response. The world of medicine is both a science and an art. With today’s ever accelerating technology, no physician, no matter how competent, can be expected to treat or deal with all the issues for which a patient may ask his or her advice. Therefore, it is important to understand that even a favorite, competent physician may not be the best choice for a particular challenge.
