Not Remarkable You Say?

I remember one time while my son Cade who was battling a brain stem brain tumor he developed some swelling around his shunt. Previously the doctors had told me that if there was ever swelling around the shunt to inform them immediately. Well, we just happened to already be in the hospital at the time, which wasn't uncommon we basically lived there for 4 months. And, being the very proactive and on top of things caregiver mom that I was I promptly informed the nurses. But low and behold before we had time to deal with the swelling issue, Cade who was only 1 year old decided he didn't want the Central line in his chest anymore and proceeded to yank it out. So he was sent immediately into surgery. After surgery while in recovery the surgeon came in, now remember at this point my husband and I had been up for 24 hours straight and been in the hospital for about 2 weeks, so when I asked the surgeon about the swelling around Cade's shunt he proceeded to inform me that it was not "remarkable". Not remarkable you say? Let's just say that was not the correct word to use to a mother who was trying to remain sane while her 1 year old child endured 4 surgeries in a matter of 4 weeks, had just started chemo and was simply exhausted emotionally, physically and spiritually.

Now you and I both know what the surgeon meant and he did not intend to upset me with his medical assessment. But what was standard surgeon lingo was not the correct language to use when speaking with a very emotionally and physically drained mother. Sometimes we can get caught up in using correct terminology that is meant to inform the patient and caregiver of the extent of our medical knowledge and years of training but only ends up making them feel that you are uncaring, cold and disconnected to emotional and physical trauma they are experiencing.

There are a few simple steps you can take that will put your patients at ease and improve the doctor/patient lines of communication.

1. When speaking with your patient don't use acronyms. Typically they have no idea what those acronyms mean.
2. Always use layman's terms. It is generally a good rule of thumb when speaking to a patient or caregiver to use language appropriate for an 8 year old child. When writing literature for patients and caregivers it is typically the standard we use when picking language for publications. I always ask myself would this make sense to an 8 year old? If you happen to know the patient or caregivers have more knowledge in these issues then it is completely appropriate to speak on their level. But in general the 8 year old rule of thumb is a pretty good one to go by.
3. Sit down when speaking to your patients. I liken this to when you want to connect to a child you bend down and get on their level to speak to them eye-to-eye. When giving your patients information or news, get on their level and look them in the eye.
4. Touch makes a connection. When you sit down to talk to your patients and you have some difficult news or maybe you can tell they are stressed or irritated. If you want to make them feel better or improve the conversation...touch their hand, put your hand on their shoulder, etc. This physical contact puts people at ease and makes them feel that you care. Don't' ever discount the power of touch.
5. Never leave patient or caregiver before asking if they have any questions and if they understand what you have discussed. This 1 simple rule will have lasting affects on your relationship with your patients.