Arthritis - Effective Communication With Your Health Care Professional

By editor | August 22, 2007

Preparing ahead of time for your visit to the doctor is an important part of your arthritis treatment plan. Your list of the questions you need to ask, the medicines you’re taking, and the details of how your’s feeling will all help your doctor to improve the care your recieve.

Once you’re in the office, here’s how you can communicate most effectively.

Establish your agenda early. If there’s a major question or problem on your mind, be sure to let the doctor know early in your conversation. Say, for example, “I want to ask you about exercise today,” so your doctor can pace himself and have time to give you all the information you need. (If you’re almost out the door and add, “Oh, the major problem is . . . ,” it’ll be harder for him to help you.)

Offer clear details. You can pack a lot of information into a few words if you choose the right ones. Be as specific as you can. “I haven’t been feeling well” doesn’t tell your doctor much, but “I’m groggy in the mornings, but i don’t have any trouble sleeping” gives clear, specific information that can help your doctor figure out what’s going on. If you’re describing pain, it helps to express the pain in terms of what you can and can’t do. Instead of saying only “My hands hurt,” give your doctor an example of just how the pain affects you, as in ” My fingers hurt so much I can’t hold a pen.” That helps your doctor to understand much more clearly what’s going on with you.

Don’t be afraid to call. While you don’t want to be on the phone to your doctor’s office constantly, neither should you sit at home worrying whether a symptom is serious enough to report. If you have a troublesome symptom a lump, a strong reaction to a medication, a severe pain call your doctor’s office. Be very clear: “I have been nauseated for three days and wonder if I should discontinue my medication or make an appointment.” The nurse or receptionist will write your question down, relay it to the doctor, and call you back. It’s quick, easy, and painless.

Know when to fold ‘em You have every right to have a doctor you trust and can talk with. It’s fine to change doctors if you feel you’ve reached an impasse, but you don’t want to move on without first voicing your concerns. If you’re feeling unhappy about your communication with your doctor, ask yourself: “Have I really talked straigh enough so that my doctor knows what I’m upset about?” Give your doctor a chance to hear you out and try to fix the problem. Otherwise, you could find yourself in a new doctor’s office and still feeling unsatisfied.


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