The medical weight loss-patient relationship is crucial to your health. We all want great relationships and the doctor-patient relationship should be no different. In fact, it is so important to us, we change doctors more frequently than any of the previous generations. It is important to take your health seriously. If you don’t, how can you expect the doctor to do so?
If your doctor is disorganized or has a poor memory, it should be a red flag. Even if you only see them once a year, they should still be friendly and courteous. If the doctor doesn’t look at your file quickly for previous visits, remind them of any allergies or previous visits. If the doctor asks the same question twice in one visit, it may be a red flag that a doctor with a better short-term memory is needed.
Does your doctor seem to have a hearing problem? Have you found yourself at the doctor’s office for the same symptoms more than once? If your doctor doesn’t seem to listen to you, there is a real issue. So much of why we need to see a doctor is based on listening to our symptoms. If the doctor is not listening, how can you get an accurate diagnosis? All relationships are based on listening and your relationship with your doctor could mean the difference between life and death.
If someone in the office is continually rude to you or others. Once, can be overlooked –we all have a bad day now and then. Continuous rudeness is in effect, disrespect. Stand up for yourself or let the doctor know that you didn’t appreciate how you were treated. We all have been rude to someone before and it wouldn’t have hurt us a bit to be confronted with this issue at the time. Continuous rudeness is not what you need to be healthy.