What Physicians Want to Know from Their Patients

Many articles and brochures have been writing on what to ask a physician when you are seeing him for the first time or for some specific problem. However what a doctor needs from a patient is simply a mystery to most patients.

Most people think it is just a case of going in to a physician and telling him what kind of problem you are experiencing, but in order for the physician to make a proper diagnosis the doctor will need much more than a general complaint of the medical issue you are having.

Here are some crucial points that you should keep in mind the next time you visit your physician.

1. Have a clear medical complaint in mind when making an appointment. I have spent many years as a nurse and the number one problem issue that doctors run across is patients with an unclear medical problem. Some patients will come in to the office with a general issue of just not feeling like themselves, or they don't really know what the problem is. Others may come in just because they haven't been in to the office for awhile and thought they should come.

It is important to realize that while the doctor does enjoy seeing all his patients, it is not necessary to make an appointment if your not truly having a problem. If you are not feeling like yourself try to get something in mind as to what makes you feel that way are you tired all the time, have you been unable to sleep. Try to firm up your complaints as much as you can before coming in to the office.

2. It is also important to tell your physician all the symptoms you have been experiencing, as well as how including how long you may have been experiencing the symptoms. Many patients come in to see their physician's and leave out valuable symptoms and ailments that may be crucial in making a proper diagnosis. In some cases patient's have even left the office without stating an ailment and then came back saying they had forgotten to mention something. It is therefore important to realize physicians are not mind readers and to make a proper diagnosis they need to know everything about what kind of medical symptoms you are having.

3. Give complete details into any current medications you are taking. Some patients will not have any idea as to the names of the medications that they are currently taking or in some cases what they are taking them for. It is important to give this to your physician so there is no adverse reactions between certain medications. As well as some medications that you may be given could possibly be duplicates of medications you are currently taking.

4. Make sure you tell your physician any allergies you may have. In some cases people forget they have allergies to dyes they use in radiology or certain types of medications. Failure to forget allergies can cause medical problems and in some cases the medical problems can be severe, if not life threatening.

5. Give your physician a full account of your medical history. A physician should normally ask you what type of surgeries, medical treatments and medical problems you may have had in the past. However it is vital that you disclose any past surgeries, treatments and problems you may have experienced, as well as any problems you may have had with them. In some cases knowing if you have had problems such as sinus surgeries in the past will give the physician a better understanding at your past medical experiences.

6. Make sure you have any medical insurance information along with birthdays and other pertinent patient information with you when coming into the office. I have been in nursing for a long time and have had patients come without any knowledge of birthdays or insurance information for their loved one such as a child or in a few cases themselves. As people age they have a hard time remembering important medical information that will be needed. Therefore, it is important to put all you medical information in a special place and always bring it with you when seeing coming to a medical facility or seeing your physician.

Finally an important note worth mentioning is please keep your appointment. In some cases keeping a patient appointment may not be able to keep an appointment, however in most cases appointments simply are forgotten. The office and the doctor have a schedule that allows for patients, however by the time a patient doesn't show for an appointment it is too late to fill with someone else that may be sick. As well as in some cases that appointment may have been important such as a surgical follow-up and the doctor needs to know how you are doing, so please keep all appointments or simply call so that we may fill your appointment time.

References for this article include: www.medicalmoment.org/_content/signs/nov08/1404006.asp
www.saching.com/Article/Facts-that-the-doctor-needs-to-know-during-a-consultation/3635