What Did the Doctor Say?
Posted By Maryann Porosky On JANUARY 07,2016
Even when you’ve been feeling well, the doctor’s appointment can be stressful. When I was driving our client Elsie to her doctor’s appointment, she recounted a dream that the doctor told her that she had a blocked carotid artery in her neck, which required surgery. She laughed about the dream, but it made me aware that she was worried about getting unexpected news.
Fortunately, I had visited with Elsie the previous week when we discussed the upcoming doctor’s visit. At that time, we wrote down her concerns of a new symptom that was important to discuss with the doctor.
Hoping to remember what you meant to discuss with the doctor during the visit doesn’t always work.
Write down questions, concerns, problems, or new symptoms so you remember important issues and details. Once Elsie returned home, she was relieved that all was well, but still concerned about her cholesterol level. I wrote that down, too. As her health care advocate, I keep notes with important information and any changes.
I was then able to convey the outcome of the doctor’s visit to her daughter in detail.
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