Why are all the medical treatments confusing?
Recently, I was talking with one of my friends about medical treatments for back pain. My friend told me about how the surgeon insisted that his pain was due to a musculoskeletal problem than a neurological one. My friend insisted that it was the other way. I was confused about the whole conversation between a doctor and the patient. This is not an argument about who is an expert. It is important that we reach a consensus and carry on with what we have decided.
I have been on both sides of an intensive care bed - as a patient and many times as a liver and transplant surgeon. I have written this blog post from being a patient who is also a doctor.
The diagnosis means little to you
Don't get me wrong. A lot of patients are interested in knowing the exact medical terminology of their disease. It sounds like a lot of medical knowledge. Also, it is easier to search the web and look for opinions elsewhere. While these are all good, it distracts you from the main aspect. It is far more important for you to understand what it means? Cirrhosis of the liver may sound awesome medical term - but understanding that it is "badly damaged liver, threatening to life" and requires "life altering treatment" will get you a better foothold on the your healthcare. So go beyond medical labels. Understand the implications of the disease in your life.
What is the natural course of the disease?
This is the next important question for you. The two components of the treatment - the disease and your own life must be matched. Is good health an option? Imagine a young adult with appendictitis. The young man has suffered from brief but severe pain and we now know that the disease is localised to a relatively unimportant organ. If we remove the diseased organ, good health is assured most of the time. Risks are minimal. Because restoration to normal life is the goal and is almost always possible, surgical treatment is easily chosen. 2 years later, it would just be a story.
Now imagine a person who is diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. There is no cure in sight apart from some experimental work and medical treatment has no lasting success. Movement is impaired and it is a social hinderance. Muscles may become weak. Most of the people who survive successfully with Parkinson's disease are not those who look at the disease name alone, but look at the implications in their life and the modifications they made for this change.
So sit back and think about what it means in your life. The change in perspective you get when you face the disease and partner with your doctor is immense.
What is the influence of this treatment on my life?
I think this is the most important basic question which must take a lot of time on the consultation. Remember, it cannot be done within a few minutes of you meeting your doctor. It takes a couple of consults for your doctor to adjust all the treatments to suit your life. A good doctor and the correct medical consultation is supposed to do that. There are no shot gun therapies which would help you and if you are not able to match your life with the treatment, you will be disappointed while the doctor will only treat your numbers and even he will feel terrible after sometime.
Share what you did differently with your doctor every time you see him and reach a consensus on the goals and then you would see progress in your treatment and also immense satisfaction from the medical team. No pathway is easy, but slow progress along a rocky road is better than no progress at all.
I see a lot of dissatisfied patients now than in the earlier part of my career. And a lot of my time is spent on explaining how my colleagues treatment affects them. It is my duty to attend to the mundane electrolyte changes and medication changes and minimise altered physiology, but it is more important that the journey be taken together with understanding and it is a part that both the doctor and the patient will enjoy.
I have been on both sides of an intensive care bed - as a patient and many times as a liver and transplant surgeon. I have written this blog post from being a patient who is also a doctor.
The diagnosis means little to you
Don't get me wrong. A lot of patients are interested in knowing the exact medical terminology of their disease. It sounds like a lot of medical knowledge. Also, it is easier to search the web and look for opinions elsewhere. While these are all good, it distracts you from the main aspect. It is far more important for you to understand what it means? Cirrhosis of the liver may sound awesome medical term - but understanding that it is "badly damaged liver, threatening to life" and requires "life altering treatment" will get you a better foothold on the your healthcare. So go beyond medical labels. Understand the implications of the disease in your life.
What is the natural course of the disease?
This is the next important question for you. The two components of the treatment - the disease and your own life must be matched. Is good health an option? Imagine a young adult with appendictitis. The young man has suffered from brief but severe pain and we now know that the disease is localised to a relatively unimportant organ. If we remove the diseased organ, good health is assured most of the time. Risks are minimal. Because restoration to normal life is the goal and is almost always possible, surgical treatment is easily chosen. 2 years later, it would just be a story.
Now imagine a person who is diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. There is no cure in sight apart from some experimental work and medical treatment has no lasting success. Movement is impaired and it is a social hinderance. Muscles may become weak. Most of the people who survive successfully with Parkinson's disease are not those who look at the disease name alone, but look at the implications in their life and the modifications they made for this change.
So sit back and think about what it means in your life. The change in perspective you get when you face the disease and partner with your doctor is immense.
What is the influence of this treatment on my life?
I think this is the most important basic question which must take a lot of time on the consultation. Remember, it cannot be done within a few minutes of you meeting your doctor. It takes a couple of consults for your doctor to adjust all the treatments to suit your life. A good doctor and the correct medical consultation is supposed to do that. There are no shot gun therapies which would help you and if you are not able to match your life with the treatment, you will be disappointed while the doctor will only treat your numbers and even he will feel terrible after sometime.
Share what you did differently with your doctor every time you see him and reach a consensus on the goals and then you would see progress in your treatment and also immense satisfaction from the medical team. No pathway is easy, but slow progress along a rocky road is better than no progress at all.
I see a lot of dissatisfied patients now than in the earlier part of my career. And a lot of my time is spent on explaining how my colleagues treatment affects them. It is my duty to attend to the mundane electrolyte changes and medication changes and minimise altered physiology, but it is more important that the journey be taken together with understanding and it is a part that both the doctor and the patient will enjoy.
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