Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Cooperation between patient and doctor is essential today in health care

Paul Dorio, MD
Physician
May 4, 2011
Share
Tweet
Share

There are many aspects to being a doctor. Just as important are the many aspects that go into being a patient. Of course, the difference is that one has been perceived as being a position of power and the other one has not. I don’t believe this distinction is useful or true in today’s world.

Patients and doctors work together, more and more, to get the job done, so to speak. Such cooperation is an essential part of today’s health care world. It is nearly as important as two newlyweds learning to live together and deal with each other’s foibles and idiosyncrasies. Well, almost.

Doctors and patients are of course simply two different groups of people with similar goals – to find out what is wrong and fix it in a timely fashion. One group – doctors, and let’s include all other health care personnel too – have areas of expertise that allow them to focus their efforts on delving into symptoms and signs of illness to find the diagnosis. Patients have their areas of expertise too – they know themselves and what is wrong with them. Of course, some people know themselves better than others do, and that makes the doctors’ jobs that much more interesting and useful.

The more doctors and patients work together, the more patients will feel that they are a part of their care. The truth of the matter is that doctors can get caught up in so many details of a day of medical sleuthing, or the bureaucracy that surrounds Medicine, that they forget to focus on the patient in front of them. This lack of direct attention leaves people/patients feeling that doctors don’t care. Or they feel that doctors are too busy to take enough time to adequately discuss their issues. There are many criticisms of doctors and most of them at one time or another are quite valid. Each of us, unfortunately, can get too busy to pay attention to proper details. The goal is to try to keep such failings to a minimum so really big mistakes don’t happen.

Dr. Donald Berwick recently gave a beautiful graduation speech to his daughter’s Yale medical school class. In his speech, he describes an unfortunate couple who were separated by a policy which precluded the wife from visiting the ailing husband while he was in the ICU. Someone somewhere thought it would be smarter or safer if the spouse/family member of an ailing person doesn’t spend too much time in the ICU room with their loved one, the patient. His aim in describing the anecdote was to inspire the graduates into realizing that we are all patients. Each of us, doctor and patient, needs to take a look into the mirror each day and pay attention to the type of image we deliver to the world. Then focus on each person in front of you. Make him/her know that you care.

Presumptions are made as we go along happily caring for people. Some of us, like me, call everyone by their surname – e.g. Mr Jones or Mrs Smith. Other people use first names. I have read that both are appropriate. But how do you know who likes to be called Bill and who prefers Mr Johnson? Out of respect I use the surname unless or until someone asks me to call them by their first name. I hope that’s the right choice. But the point isn’t whether I have made the correct choice. The aim is to adhere to what the patient wants. If I use the first or last name for someone who wishes the opposite, I am doing him/her a disservice. If I do it again, after correction, I am being disrespectful and ignorant.

And, as Dr. Berwick said in his speech: “Those who suffer need you to be something more than a doctor; they need you to be a healer.” These are powerful words and he isn’t implying that each doctor needs to be an encyclopedia of medical knowledge. He expands his comment by telling us, as doctors, to “do something even more difficult than putting your white coat on. You must take your white coat off. You must recover, embrace, and treasure the memory of your shared, frail humanity – of the dignity in each and every soul.”

Treat people with respect, admiration and dignity. That, I think, is the secret of a great doctor – something I aspire to be everyday.

Paul Dorio is an interventional radiologist who blogs at his self-titled site, Paul J Dorio, MD.

Submit a guest post and be heard on social media’s leading physician voice.

Prev

Why patient satisfaction scores won't decrease health care costs

May 4, 2011 Kevin 11
…
Next

New ACGME work hour regulations for interns: friend or foe?

May 5, 2011 Kevin 8
…

Tagged as: Patients, Public Health & Policy

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Why patient satisfaction scores won't decrease health care costs
Next Post >
New ACGME work hour regulations for interns: friend or foe?

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Paul Dorio, MD

  • A radiologist reflects on indeterminate findings

    Paul Dorio, MD
  • Don’t be afraid to ask your radiologist for help

    Paul Dorio, MD
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    Why test recalls should not be considered cheating

    Paul Dorio, MD

More in Physician

  • The man in seat 11A survived, but why don’t our patients?

    Dr. Vivek Podder
  • When did we start treating our lives like trauma?

    Maureen Gibbons, MD
  • Medicalizing burnout misses the real problem

    Jessie Mahoney, MD
  • Why some doctors age gracefully—and others grow bitter

    Patrick Hudson, MD
  • The hidden incentives driving frivolous malpractice lawsuits

    Howard Smith, MD
  • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

    Harvey Castro, MD, MBA
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Why removing fluoride from water is a public health disaster

      Steven J. Katz, DDS | Conditions
    • When did we start treating our lives like trauma?

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • When the diagnosis is personal: What my mother’s Alzheimer’s taught me about healing

      Pearl Jones, MD | Conditions
    • 2 hours to decide my future: How the SOAP residency match traps future doctors

      Nicolette V. S. Sewall, MD, MPH | Education
    • Why physician voices matter in the fight against anti-LGBTQ+ legislation [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why being a physician mom is harder than anyone admits

      Cynthia Chen-Joea, DO, MPH | Physician
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Bureaucracy over care: How the U.S. health care system lost its way

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
    • Why we fear being forgotten more than death itself

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why recovery after illness demands dignity, not suspicion

      Trisza Leann Ray, DO | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Why physician voices matter in the fight against anti-LGBTQ+ legislation [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The man in seat 11A survived, but why don’t our patients?

      Dr. Vivek Podder | Physician
    • Why gambling addiction is America’s next health crisis

      Safina Adatia, MD | Conditions
    • When did we start treating our lives like trauma?

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • How robotics are reshaping the future of vascular procedures

      David Fischel | Conditions
    • Medicalizing burnout misses the real problem

      Jessie Mahoney, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 3 Comments >

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.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Why removing fluoride from water is a public health disaster

      Steven J. Katz, DDS | Conditions
    • When did we start treating our lives like trauma?

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • When the diagnosis is personal: What my mother’s Alzheimer’s taught me about healing

      Pearl Jones, MD | Conditions
    • 2 hours to decide my future: How the SOAP residency match traps future doctors

      Nicolette V. S. Sewall, MD, MPH | Education
    • Why physician voices matter in the fight against anti-LGBTQ+ legislation [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why being a physician mom is harder than anyone admits

      Cynthia Chen-Joea, DO, MPH | Physician
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Bureaucracy over care: How the U.S. health care system lost its way

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
    • Why we fear being forgotten more than death itself

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why recovery after illness demands dignity, not suspicion

      Trisza Leann Ray, DO | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Why physician voices matter in the fight against anti-LGBTQ+ legislation [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The man in seat 11A survived, but why don’t our patients?

      Dr. Vivek Podder | Physician
    • Why gambling addiction is America’s next health crisis

      Safina Adatia, MD | Conditions
    • When did we start treating our lives like trauma?

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • How robotics are reshaping the future of vascular procedures

      David Fischel | Conditions
    • Medicalizing burnout misses the real problem

      Jessie Mahoney, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Cooperation between patient and doctor is essential today in health care
3 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...