HOW TO SPEAK DOCTOR By Cheree Cleghorn - AN INSIDER'S GUIDE FOR YOU, THE PATIENT

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of the Minutes You Have With Your Doctors

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Being a patient means being active, not passive, in working with your care-givers.

If you feel too bad to be an active patient, ask someone close to you to act with and for you during your illness.

Trust your instincts.

Know your problem-solving style, what you are good at and what you are not. Be willing to ask for help with anything you should not try to handle.

Never forget that trusted medical experts urge you to seek a second opinion when the problem is important.

“Why would I not hire the nicest ones?”

When he heard a staff member tell him he seemed to have the nicest faculty members of all the departments in the medical school that was his response.

“Why would I not hire the nicest ones?" They all come here with the best grades, best references and the best whatever-you-want. Since we are able to have only great choices among applicants, why wouldn’t we pick the doctors who are good people----easier for patients to talk to, easier to work with, better with other people doing research?”

Diagnosis is one word.

But there are so many kinds of diagnoses.

Acute illness can cause other problems. Chronic disease is so common, lots of people have two or more life-long diagnoses to manage.

Patients, their friends and families seek information and support in different ways at different times.

“How bad is it?” “How scared are we?” “How much is this going to change our lives?” “Is he going to be okay?”
When those are the kinds of questions being asked, even left-brain types may want someone to talk with rather than something to read.

For the great majority of patients, a doctor visit is just a blur.

You will get the most out of each doctor visit when you do a little preparation before-hand and when---and we know, you may not feel good---you make notes at the end.
That is the best way to get the full benefit of your visit and treatment plan, even if the plan is to “wait and see.”

Quick.Who would you want with you were you to need prompt or urgent medical attention? Someone you know would not lose it or freeze? Someone who would know when to call 911?

If you count actual people, being admitted to a hospital nowadays is not nearly as common as it used to be---and it was not common back then, either, if you count admissions per 1000 people. In the last 15 years, each year brings innovations that make it possible to deliver more care on an outpatient basis, care which once was considered major.

Your wellness program will be greatly enhanced for your employees if they learn How To Speak Doctor. Each time your workers talk with their doctors, they have an opportunity to get the greatest benefit possible from their time with these care-givers. Since co-pays now are bigger, employees who are more confident patients will go in sooner, preventing or catching problems sooner. that may save them money. It may save you money, too. How To Speak Doctor is an online course to teach your employees how to “speak doctor” whether they are in an office, emergency room or hospital. To learn more how the program works >> please click here

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