January 15, 2010
I’ve done it. Have you? Walked out of the doctor’s office scratching your head, telling your waiting family member or friend, or running to the nearest computer to get online…and figure out what the doctor was talking about. Why don’t we just ask?
First, it is a bit embarrassing if the doctor says something and doesn’t ask us if we have any questions. It seems like we should know what is going on. So, we don’t ask because we feel embarrassed that we don’t understand. These days, I try to ask myself, “Do I literally want to ‘die’ from embarrassment?” If I don’t understand and I don’t ask a question, what are the chances I could…fail to follow advice, fail to understand my diagnosis, and well—harm my health…
Second, we have to admit to ourselves that we don’t quite understand what’s going on. Cholesterol called good cholesterol and bad cholesterol…what does that mean? Isn’t it all bad? If I at least ask the doctor to spell it or write it out, I find that most of the time, I get more information and I get it reinforced in writing.
…two ways to help myself out when I don’t understand……
I was diagnosed with migraine headaches over a year ago. During the diagnosis process, I was poked a prodded with a million tests and procedures to try to figure out what was wrong with my brain. I found myself overwhelmed with information and kind of scared about what was happening to me. It wasn’t until then that I realized how important it is to have a supportive friend or family member with you while important tests are being performed. I didn’t know what to ask because I was busy trying to process what was going on. I think that happens way too often. Doctors are too focused on getting tests done and not focused enough on how the patient is feeling.
As mentioned in the prior comments, I also believe that patients do not ask questions because they are trying to save face and they feel like they should know the answers to their questions. Physicians can be very intimidating especially if they are in a time constraint and trying to get in and out of the visit. However, patients need to remember that it is their right to ask questions about their health, they are not experts and do not have all the necessary information needed to process certain health information. A collaborative model is ideal yet much harder in reality to obtain. My mother is a health provider and because of how long she has been in the field and the amount of time she spends in that atmosphere, she is constantly speaking in medical terms. My family often has to remind her that we aren’t in the health field and don’t understand what she is saying. She’ll then explain her words in layman terms. I think this situation goes for most physicians as well, they don’t intentionally mean to be confusing, and if asked will explain things to you in a way in which you can understand.
I think we don’t ask doctors to clarify information because we don’t want to come off looking uninformed, silly, stupid, or ignorant. In today’s health care system, I feel a lot of people think that doctors are in control and they have very limited control over their health and what to do about it. Patients need to be more literate in the health and ask doctors questions. Just like Emily said, health care needs to be a collaborative effort. If patients aren’t understanding the diagnosis, they are going to have little self efficacy to overcome whatever health problem is affecting them and be back to the doctor with another issue. Patients get to your problem with the doctor in the first half minute you are there and continue to ask questions until you understand what is going on. It is YOUR health. Also if you are unsure of good questions to ask, ask your doctor if there is a way you can get a hold of him or her later after you proceeded what is going on to ask questions that arise. I know a lot of doctor’s offices that now have nurse lines that can help answer these questions. Communication leads to greater knowledge which leads to better understanding and control patients have over their health.
I feel like we don’t ask our doctor’s to clarify things that we don’t understand because we are trying save face, or trying to manage our impressions and seem like we are competent people when it comes to our health. Today, we are very clinician- centered communication oriented. The patient feels the health care providers are experts who can treat our disease and that they are unqualified to participate. The providers then feel that that patients are wasting time when they are trying to explain what is the problem in with details. In this clinician-centered model, there is a huge power difference between the doctor and patient, so the patient can sometimes feel embarrassed or stupid for asking questions when they don’t understand something. I know I am guilty of this myself. It is important that our society moves more towards a collaborative model where there is more of a dialogue between the doctor and patient rather than the doctor just telling the patient what to do and the patient quietly listens. Hopefully, this will allow the patient to feel more at ease and able to ask questions when they need to without feeling embarrassed or ashamed.
…true. Preparation is key. What do I want to ask? What do I want to know? How can I ask my questions and gain knowledge…while respecting the time constraints placed on both the doctor and the organization …