Communication with patients is a problem. How do we fix it?

In my practice of facilitating cancer support groups, all I do is listen to patients and their families. Consequently, I hear much about the nature of their care. They generally speak favorably about its technical aspects, and indeed these are often awesome. But when they complain, it’s uniformly — and I mean one hundred percent — about communication. One man has been trying to get an appointment with a pulmonologist for several weeks now. The required referral from his primary care doctor was sent long ago, by fax and also by snail mail, yet the specialist’s office claims it wasn’t received. When the man phoned to check on progress, he told me, the receptionist barked, “No. Didn’t I tell you I’d call you when we got it?” So he hasn’t secured a referral yet, only a dose of antagonism. You might think that the ability to, say, transplant hearts might also mean we can transfer a record across town, but apparently we’re not as advanced in that area. I hear other, similar stories, too. For example, some medical offices’ phone recordings are poorly designed or corrupted. Continue reading ... Your patients are rating you online: How to respond. Manage your online reputation: A social media guide. Find out how.
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - Category: Journals (General) Authors: Tags: Physician Emergency Primary care Source Type: blogs