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

Preserving the doctor-patient encounter in the face of technology

David Mokotoff, MD
Physician
September 25, 2012
Share
Tweet
Share

I recently was on vacation in Rocky Mountain National Park. Suspended on an overlook of astonishing beauty at 11,000 feet above sea level, I stared out at the tundra and bits of August snow that still clung to the highest peaks. Suddenly my attention was snapped from the massive boulders and landscapes to the ringing of my cell phone. It was a referring doctor asking me about a mutual patient with uncontrolled high blood pressure who needed to be seen as soon as possible.

The good thing about mobile communication devices is that just about anyone who has your number can you reach you anytime and almost anywhere. That’s also the bad thing. I know — I should have turned it off, but I had forgotten. I politely explained to the doc that I was out of town, but would let my office know that the patient needed to be seen that week.

As many things in life, technology offers both improvements and harmful distractions. No longer do I have to tell my family and friends where I am going or how I can be reached — they simply call, email, or text me. Gone are the days of pagers, (which I curiously still see on the hips of some doctors––probably the same ones without an EMR or office fax machine), but largely everyone has a cell or smart phone.

I often joke that as an aging physician, I am confronted by two diverting curves on a graph, each one heading in opposite directions. One is the number of useful synapses left in my brain plotted on the horizontal axis, against my chronological age, on the vertical axis. That curve is heading down. The other has the same aging axis, but lists the number and types of new technological devices and inventions. This curve is heading north. I’m not sure when it happened, but I am guessing the lines crossed a few years ago.

Instant informational access is a two-edged sword. On the one hand, I do believe that smart phones and tablets and a good EMR, improves the speed and quality of patient care. However, the Internet has opened up a veritable Pandora’s box of self-diagnosis options for my patients as well. Or as my sister likes to term it, “Dr. Internet.” I remind my patients about the old saying of “A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing,” but most of them then look at me in mild shock or disbelief. It is as if they are thinking, but not saying, “I know you went to medical school and did all that training for all those years, but I think WebMD is just as smart as you are.” To which I think silently, “So if everything you need to know is on the World Wide Web, then why are you here?”

Mind games aside, I believe that I have kept up with the technological advances in medicine, and am convinced that the benefits outweigh the risks, (such as device addiction, distraction, and depersonalization). However, the doctor-patient face-to-face, (not FaceTime) relationship, must be preserved. Technology, in whatever form, is just a tool, and like any tool can be used for good or well, Angry Birds.

David Mokotoff is a cardiologist who blogs at Cardio Author Doc.  He is the author of The Moose’s Children: A Memoir of Betrayal, Death, and Survival.

Prev

How my military experience helped me become a better doctor

September 25, 2012 Kevin 12
…
Next

4 reasons why doctors need to drive health care technology

September 25, 2012 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Health IT, Patients, Primary Care

Post navigation

< Previous Post
How my military experience helped me become a better doctor
Next Post >
4 reasons why doctors need to drive health care technology

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

More by David Mokotoff, MD

  • How tunnel vision can lead to bad medicine

    David Mokotoff, MD
  • Why doctors don’t like to retire

    David Mokotoff, MD
  • The unscientific lure of antibiotics

    David Mokotoff, 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 Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • 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
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
    • Reassessing the impact of CDC’s opioid guidelines on chronic pain care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why removing fluoride from water is a public health disaster

      Steven J. Katz, DDS | Conditions
  • 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
    • “Think twice, heal once”: Why medical decision-making needs a second opinion from your slower brain (and AI)

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Tech
    • Why we fear being forgotten more than death itself

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Bureaucracy over care: How the U.S. health care system lost its way

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • 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
    • How the shingles vaccine could help prevent dementia

      Marc Arginteanu, MD | Conditions

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

Leave a Comment

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 Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • 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
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
    • Reassessing the impact of CDC’s opioid guidelines on chronic pain care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why removing fluoride from water is a public health disaster

      Steven J. Katz, DDS | Conditions
  • 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
    • “Think twice, heal once”: Why medical decision-making needs a second opinion from your slower brain (and AI)

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Tech
    • Why we fear being forgotten more than death itself

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Bureaucracy over care: How the U.S. health care system lost its way

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • 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
    • How the shingles vaccine could help prevent dementia

      Marc Arginteanu, MD | Conditions

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

Leave a Comment

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

Loading Comments...