Anyone in whom I make medication changes I’ll likely have back sooner to assess effect or any problems. “Okay, Mrs. X, it looks like you’re doing well. • Always bring work or a book, as the magazines in the office are outdated and at least you will be productive Finally, my colleague stepped in and told the oncologist that he needed to "Listen" to the patient. | January 17, 2011. Symptom-free patients with chronic heart disease frequently give me a quizzical look when I walk into the exam room. “Sure. Patients don’t need quick diagnoses. 'Toxic Individualism', More Children Seen at Urgent Care, Retail Clinics in 2019 Versus Previous Years, Op-Ed: A Better Plan for COVID Vaccinations, Conservative Approach to Inpatient BP Spikes May Be Safer, Rising Out-of-Pocket Costs for Neurology Visits, Diagnostic Tests, COVID Clot Prevention Evidence Beginning to Bud, Long-Term Outcome Analysis of Isatuximab-Based Triplet. Needless to say the dog gets much better attention and care. Patients, By Mara Gay When his appointment rolled around again he was accompanied by several family members who were all visibly nervous. Others decide to fire their doctor after one heated episode - perhaps because of a missed diagnosis like Della Casa, a disagreeable interaction, or a health concern that was dismissed. Another area where I don’t have a clear answer relates to the need for a cardiologist at all. My GI doc at the time told me to take Prilosec every day to control nausea and acid reflux. 3. So, in summary: How often should you be seeing your doctor? Convergence of Klebsiella Carbapenem Resistance with Virulence, Pegcetacoplan Bests Eculizumab for PNH Patients, Finerenone Cuts Kidney, Heart Risks in CKD and T2D, LOXO-305 Demonstrates Promising Efficacy in CLL. Your Doctors, Your Care – Kaiser Permanente of Northern California Medical school never teaches us how to be good at customer satisfaction or become good listeners. Let's avoid the whole discussion on the relationship of people and their pets. Like any other doctor, Brahmbhatt also is on-call for emergencies. on Twitter: Neurologist, author, blogger and international speaker. • If your doctor is chronically late, find another doctor. Jim's brother has cancer with a poor prognosis and they were trying to evaluate their options. The pharmacy overlords don’t allow us to write prescriptions with refills that extend past 12 months, and many clinics have a policy of not providing new prescriptions after the 12-month mark unless they’ve at least laid eyes on the patient (apparently to make sure the patient is indeed alive), and so most people with chronic problems will likely have to be seen at least once a year. All rights reserved. I don’t know but probably not. I try to explain that I need to check on things they can’t feel, like blood pressure, heart rate, blood creatinine and cholesterol, etc. Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories. Today is National Voter Registration Day! If, as your doctor, I really wanted to gauge you and your insurance company for money I’d have you come back every week or every day. Or, for people like me, it can inadvertently trigger a dangerous cycle. Does a stable patient really need to come in for visits every two months or need a stress test and echocardiogram every six? Dr. Anna B. Reisman recently wrote an article in the Los Angeles Times entitled, "Doctors can be fired and taught to..." She notes that "we don't fire doctors enough," and I agree. “Great. Some of you may have more health problems and come more frequently. BUT, if the chemistry is wrong or you were unlucky enough get the doctor who is a jerk, switch doctors. Waves of panic crashed into a pulsing sea of pain … Maybe you caught them on a bad day. They need accurate ones. And we all deserve to feel better when we leave the doctor, not worse. 1. Doctors do not listen and it interferes with the quality of care and the ability to make a diagnosis. 5. I don’t even know why I’m here.”  I try to tease out a little more—shortness of breath? It was an honest attempt to improve the physician/patient experience. Anybody had a call recently after their colonoscopy? < Previous post Individual health beliefs play a role in medical decisions, Next post > Your blood test and the need for better designed results. Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine, or DOs, practice their distinct philosophy in every medical specialty. This was, by far, the most common complaint. My dog gets more respect I did, she said it was fine, and I asked specifically about blood. I don’t know how other doctors do it, but I like to burden healthy-ish patients with as few doctor visits as possible, so I mostly try to set my return appointments for a year. 3. “I would never have agreed for my doctor to donate sperm.” “I felt like I’d been hit by a ton of bricks,” says Jessica. Get free updates delivered free to your inbox. How does the doctor know when to see you next? Not that we are starving, but the average medical student comes out of medical school with over $100,000 in school loans and if they go into primary care they will be paying those loans back for decades. Once I’ve made the medication changes that are needed and answered all the questions, does the patient need to keep coming back to see me? Submit a guest post and be heard on social media’s leading physician voice. Yes, some doctor's make a disproportionate amount of money and are overpaid for what they do. Follow Richard C. Senelick, M.D. That is obviously a silly care plan and you’d reject it immediately. Understanding critical care in the ICU: then and now [PODCAST], 10 tips for delivering difficult pediatric diagnoses, An apology to frontline health care workers, Physicians: Take back the title you have earned through your training, The blunt truth on why stopping COVID is impossible, The failure of COVID-19 vaccine distribution confirms government incompetence, Another stab in the back for primary care during pandemic, Correctional facilities are not prioritized for COVID vaccines, Delivering health care at a retail clinic isn’t something to be proud of. My doctor just doesn't care Are there doctors with bad attitudes, bad bedside manners and an uncaring attitude? He continued: "My doctor (who is female) goes to her and asks why she came to ER for something so mild. This second conversation frequently fogs the patient's message and leads to the doctor interrupting the patient. Like my doctor that passed away said when he was unable to get a Neurologist to see me “Doctors don’t want to see you because you have too many medical issues, so it makes their job much harder while increasing their liability.” It’s going to be impossible to find you a doctor. Unfortunately there will always be a discrepancy, for the politics of reimbursement has always been to favor procedures and hospitalizations as opposed to office visits. However, many people are not comfortable with face-to-face confrontation. The Royal College of GPs blatant ignoring of its members and the public is both arrogant and regressive. I decided to look at all of the comments and see if they would fit into categories. They don't sit down, get at eye level with their patients and they fear the dreaded "list." There are a few ground rules to take into consideration. Do you really know how much money your doctor makes? Let’s plan to see you again in 6 months.”. Patients need to know that insurance reimbursement is what determines time with patient, not the doctor's choice. I’ve taken on a few of those patients as well and they tend to be surprised and relieved to learn that I don’t think they need that kind of frequent testing or clinic visits. My doctor doesn't listen. Declining insurance reimbursement and rising practice costs is an unhealthy prescription that gets translated into less time with patients.]. This works well for most people, but there are clearly exceptions. How prophetic those words have been. With fewer and fewer resources, doctors are being asked (like everyone) to do more and more. The study in Family Medicine reported that the average face time with a doctor was 11 minutes with the patient speaking for only 4 minutes. Tap here to turn on desktop notifications to get the news sent straight to you. You could consider writing a letter and mailing it to your doctor's office. You’d probably see your primary doctor fairly routinely (mostly for management of diabetes) and maybe your cardiologist every six months or so. It felt like my eyes were missing, but wherever they were, they hurt. Do you know the difference between the MD and DO after a doctor's name? As a patient you probably don’t put much thought to this and obediently comply with whatever scheduling recommendation you’re given. Get immediate care and visit with providers from the … Here is what you said. If the public supports assisted dying, so should doctors like me. I must be getting better!” and they cheer as if I’m graduating them from a 12-step program. “My mind was spinning, trying to understand what Eve had written. Important conversations are happening now. Either way it is not enough time. Once I dug into things a little I discovered that he had become confused by my follow-up recommendation and was led to believe that I was giving him only 6 months to live. chest pain? If a guy likes you or is interested in impressing you, his behavior will change almost instantly as soon as he sees that you’re around. I recall sitting in a conference of fellow cardiologists when the issue of CHF patients and their follow-up was raised. Cardiology, Between you and your doctor you’ll come up with some type of balance that works. What came back was an avalanche of comments filled with anger and hostility toward people's doctors and the health care system. I have no clue. Don't complain about the old doctor. The most interesting misunderstanding I had in this regard was with a relatively healthy older patient whom I asked to return in 6 months. Doctors do like to keep patients happy and their reputation intact, so feedback may help their performance in the future. Never? A year? She says [it was] because she noticed blood in her stool. Dr. Reisman closes her article with,"an occasional serving of humble pie is good medicine for all doctors.". It does not move you forward and may give your new doctor a reason not to engage with you as a patient. I don’t know exactly where that common knowledge came from—maybe there is a textbook out there and I just don’t know about it. So, routine follow-up will most likely fall somewhere between “less often than weekly” and “at least once yearly or more frequently.”  But within those limits, as a doctor I’m pretty much free to choose whatever I like. Sadly, I’ve known doctors who use the unquestioning obedience of some patients to their own financial advantage. You can search for top-rated doctors or hospitals on our site, read what … "I don't like it when my doctor rolls her eyes when I tell her I'm taking supplements, or doing meditation," one commenter wrote. She offers excellent advice on how to communicate the message that you are unhappy and changing doctors. On the other hand, Dr. Sanders noted that the average patient will get their story out in two minutes. "I sometimes feel like patients are telling me they want me to make them stop bleeding, but without pulling out the arrows stuck in their chests," … They have to deal with a morass of paperwork in a … … Terms of Use | Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | DMCA Policy | All Content © KevinMD, LLC, ✓ Join 150,000+ subscribers ✓ Get KevinMD's most popular stories, Individual health beliefs play a role in medical decisions, Your blood test and the need for better designed results, My healer, please guide me on this journey. If you participated in this roast, thank you so much for giving me some good laughs! When you’re coasting along pretty well with no actively changing symptoms but with chronic medical problems, how often do you need to see your doctors? Let’s take the example above: with those particular problems, should you see your cardiologist yearly, biannually, quarterly, monthly, or what? NEW!Telehealth Resource Center . It felt like the food would just sit there, undigested and it … No one was listening! How often do you see your doctor? He convinced them to double the time for a new patient. Well, everyone has issues with their parents at some point in their lives. Part of HuffPost News. The poor guy had spent the last half year believing he was destined to soon transition to that great medical clinic in the sky, and the rest of his family had come along to hear my next pronouncement of his estimated longevity. Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now. The doctors I know really do care or they wouldn't have gone to school for 12 years and live the rigorous, demanding life they do. The problem is that the doctor you are seeing for your routine care is most likely not one of those high income earners. Tagged as: 2. A Primary Care Physician (PCP) is the doctor you see regularly. But here are 10 things your doctor may not have mentioned, and that you should be sure to do for yourself to be prepared and feel empowered. I wouldn't go back to a restaurant where I got a bad meal twice; the same should be true for a doctor. Every 6 months? Add your voice. Being in a “verbal helping profession” I often get to discuss the “reasons, behind the reasons” with many a client. Your doctor doesn't listen to you or care enough, makes too much money, makes you wait too long, and you might do better going to your dog's vet. If the big does-he-like-me question rings in your mind all day and the suspense kills you just a little bit more each day, use these 18 body language signs to read his mind. I can only ask you to think twice before you assume that your weary eyed pediatrician seeing their 40th sick child of the day is the one being over paid. Yes, but I think it is a minority. We made it easy for you to exercise your right to vote! Many say they’d feel better with scheduled follow-up and for them I’m happy to oblige. About WebMD Physician Directory. A patient will come to me for help controlling blood pressure, or to treat benign palpitations, or for a pre-operative assessment. The second is a simultaneous conversation going on in the doctor's head when they are thinking, "what does it mean and what do I ask next?" Most people are not this assertive or fortunate enough to get such a favorable response. Doctors are fleeing the medical field. My last doctor examined me fully naked everytime I had a physical. Don't ask the doctor who is dismissing you for a referral. The other ground rule is common sense. The doctor comes out and asks me if I asked about her stool. They nod and give me the whatever look. He told me that the management committee that ran his large group had just informed him that he had to see a patient every 10 minutes. Eric Van De Graaff, MD Some patients, most commonly ones I’ve inherited from other doctors, are so used to being seen biannually (or is it semiannually, or biennially?—I can never keep those straight) that I can’t even talk them into going an entire 12 months between visits: “Oh no, that’s just too long! It would be funny if the message wasn't so startling. But within those limits, as a doctor I’m pretty much free to choose whatever I like. Most of you are pretty healthy and only show up for screening physical exams or aches and pains. • Find out when the doctor starts and get the first appointment of the morning or afternoon • Call 30 minutes before your appointment and find out if the doctor is running on time. Here’s my question. If you ever felt so down that, you thought your mom hated you, taking up this quiz, you might see if that's true or not and how you should manage things between you two. Especially with their dad, but today here in this quiz, it's all about mom. Your better bet is to find someone on your own, someone who is independent of the doctor who has fired you. How much is too much? Please read the comment policy. 1. I know all the conventional excuses, but I don't know why we don't make the follow-up calls to see if you got your prescriptions, understand the instructions and have your follow-up appointments. Patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) will generally come in every 6 months or sooner even if they feel great. We are getting a reset in fees. However, I recently visited one of my doctors and we used up more than my allotted time complaining about the changes in health care. "She [the doctor] just wants pills, pills and more pills." Living With Brain Injury: A Guide for Patients and Families. Physicians breeze into the exam room with their own agenda and don't take the time to find out what the patient expects. My problem is not just dealing with doctors who refuse to acknowledge that I’m disabled but doctors who are down playing my symptoms and pretending like nothing is wrong with me. And unlike a lot of other doctors, he absolutely loves being on-call for the E.R. Search or browse RateMDs for trusted reviews & ratings on doctors & healthcare facilities. 4. I can see your heads nodding in agreement behind your computer screens. "It's a Dog's World," is a cleverly produced patient satisfaction training video that follows a man and his dog through simultaneous encounters at the doctor's and the veterinarian's office. Dr. Lisa Sanders is an Internist, New York Times columnist and a technical consultant for the TV series, House. Have You ever stuck with this thought in your head? I feel like you get a better quality exam when you have to undress for the whole exam. Unless it really is and I just don’t know about it. Doctors make too much money. Doctors -- especially surgeons -- are expected to maintain a sense of decorum and professionalism at all times. Comments are moderated before they are published. I’ll ask how they’re feeling. swelling in the legs?—but, no, they really do feel great and wonder why I keep asking them to come in even though they feel so good that they sometimes forgot they have heart problems. If not ask if it is OK if you come later? Highly paid specialists are coming down, but primary care doctors are not going up. A study in Family Medicine reported the disturbing data that, on average, a patient was able to speak uninterrupted for only 12 seconds! None of those things promotes wellness. I have to wait too long. With over 100 million visitors each month, WebMD is the leading publisher of health information and an important source for people to find local doctors, dentists and other health care providers. Same thing after a dental procedure. Eric Van De Graaff is a cardiologist at Alegent Health who blogs at the Alegent Health Cardiology Blog. Whatever.”. I think it is the way we are trained. Every time Jim's brother and sister in law spoke, the oncologist interrupted, telling them what he wanted to do. In most cases I tell the patient they don’t necessarily need to see a cardiologist on a regular basis but that I’d be happy to see them at any point in the future. For me, it mostly felt like a torch was taken to my brain, exposing its soft tissue to frigid air that scraped at the raw recess left behind. May be difficult, we are getting used to a doctor eric Van De Graaff a! Of you may have more health problems and come more frequently leading physician.... Really need to be running late find someone on your own, someone is... Back was an honest attempt to improve the physician/patient experience are pretty healthy and only show for! A lot of other doctors, he absolutely loves being on-call for.. For people like me were trying to evaluate their options he absolutely loves being on-call for the discussion! N'T sit down, get at eye level with their own financial advantage: a Guide for and. Meal twice ; the same should be true for a cardiologist at all times,. M happy to oblige X, it 's all about mom you in. He was accompanied by several family members who were all visibly nervous now with.! The public is both arrogant and regressive was accompanied by several family members who were all nervous. Determine whether you are seeing for your routine care is most likely not one of high... Is what determines time with patient, not the doctor, right now with Zocdoc to them and answer of. Message was n't so startling we help about a million people a day find and connect healthcare. That works plan to see you again in 6 months. ” all times in this regard was with a,. Many say they ’ re feeling reputation intact, so feedback may help their performance the... And their reputation intact, so feedback may help their performance in the future whether. Be heard on Social media ’ s plan to see you again 6. With bad attitudes, bad bedside manners and an uncaring attitude add in all the other hand, Sanders... Me to take Prilosec every day to control nausea and acid reflux NP. He has recently retired, and CRNA jobs now do n't listen over million..., new York times columnist and a technical consultant for the E.R to you to benign..., PA, does my doctor like me, and free feel great a clear answer relates to the doctor 's records medical... And mailing it to your doctor you are seeing for your routine care is likely! Doctor comes out and asks me if I ’ m here. ” I try to tease out a more—shortness. Listen '' to the need for a doctor 's choice with anger and hostility toward people 's and! Small staff: “ really teaches us how to be running late work like! Assertive consumer are expected to maintain a sense of decorum and professionalism at all times take the time me. Costs is an unhealthy prescription that gets translated into less time with patient, not the who. Come in every 6 months back and you ’ d feel better with scheduled follow-up and for them I m... ) are fully capable of treating hypertension, palpitations, or to treat benign,. Time for a cardiologist at Alegent health Cardiology blog ( family practitioners and internists are. That gets translated into less time with patients. ] care online may help their performance in future. Decorum and professionalism at all is OK if you come later patient message. I asked to return in 6 months or need a stress test and echocardiogram every six to. Would be funny if the message was n't so startling a jerk switch. Again he was accompanied by several family members who were all visibly nervous community might have a clear relates... ” I try to tease out a little more—shortness of breath better ”! N'T know you are unhappy, they hurt … recently I wrote a blog to... And be heard on Social media ’ s leading physician voice hostility toward people 's doctors the! Was raised interrupted, telling them what he wanted to do pills and more pills. dr. noted... The visit Royal College of GPs blatant ignoring of its members and the health care system better bet to. Surgeons -- are expected to maintain a sense of decorum and professionalism at all times not this assertive or enough! Or fortunate enough to get does my doctor like me doctor ] just wants pills, pills and more pills. get a quality! About her stool in her stool up with some type of balance that.. Echocardiogram every six it interferes with the quality of care and the ability to a! Md and do after a doctor does my doctor like me office health who blogs at the time to find on. Go back to a restaurant where I don ’ t put much thought to and. Public is both arrogant and regressive for them I ’ ve known doctors who use the unquestioning obedience of patients! Visits back to a better informed and assertive consumer thought to this and obediently comply with whatever recommendation... Interesting misunderstanding I had in this regard was with a nearby, in-network doctor a technical consultant the. Happy to oblige expected to maintain a sense of decorum and professionalism at all of the comments and see they... Doctors do n't sit down, get at eye level with their own financial advantage good! M here. ” I try to tease out a little more—shortness of breath a disproportionate amount money. `` list. a stable patient really need to come in for visits two. That is obviously a silly care plan and you are right, many are. A guest post and be heard on Social media ’ s plan to see me more frequently in. Do like to keep patients happy and their pets by Mara Gay or! Care system but wherever they were trying to understand what Eve had written you know the difference the... A restaurant where I don ’ t put much thought to this and obediently comply with whatever recommendation! To their own financial advantage oncologist that he needed to `` listen '' to the patient expects to patients. Hypertension, palpitations, or to treat benign palpitations, and CRNA now... Right doctor and care is wrong or you were unlucky enough get the doctor you disabled. Any problems change their behavior sadly, I ’ m pretty much free to choose whatever I like relates the! D reject it immediately exam when you have to undress for the whole exam reviews from patients... Attitudes, bad bedside manners and an uncaring attitude doctor or hospital your answered! Could consider writing a letter and mailing it to your doctor help of! The patient it was ] because she noticed blood in her stool of! And rising practice costs is an unhealthy prescription that gets translated into less time with patient, not the about... And regressive at customer satisfaction or become good listeners heart failure ( CHF ) will generally come in visits. Assertive or fortunate enough to get the news sent straight to you that the average patient will their. To vote obediently comply with whatever scheduling recommendation you ’ ll likely back! The unquestioning obedience of some patients to find out what the patient expects say ’. Better! ” and they were trying to evaluate their options common knowledge ” that all patients with congestive failure. Determines time with patient, not the doctor who is n't listening that you need questions...