Do you ever feel like you might not have gotten everything out of your consultation that you wanted? Maybe you didn’t ask that question you had been thinking about or didn’t get the prescription you were after. This can be frustrating and it is often equally frustrating for the GP or specialist who later finds out that you weren’t willing to ask the question or they failed to understand the scenario and support it.
However, there are always ways to make things better for both you and your provider and below are a few tips to ensure that you are a better patient and get more out of your next consultation.
Visit a professional you can be honest with
Honesty is crucial to getting the most out of your consultations. Following a few visits you should start to feel as though there is a relationship developing. Don’t feel the need to be the ‘perfect’ patient as an honest patient is the best patient and this means sharing all the facts and not hiding anything that you think they may not want to hear.
This is also likely to have a positive impact on your in that your provider is more likely to be honest with you also. They will be less likely to sugar-coat things and this will most likely result in a better treatment for you.
Know what you want to talk about
So often people will attend a consultation with one big idea in their head that they want to talk about but all the other things are made up on the spot. When you are visiting a medical professional they need to know all of the facts in order to decide on the best course of action. Have a think about what you want to say and discuss prior to the appointment so that you can be sure everything will be covered.
By thinking about what you want to say prior to the appointment you are also likely to better inform your medical professional with more information allowing them to give you a better diagnosis as to what the problem is. This then leads to better treatment and likely a faster recovery than otherwise would have ensued.
Listen carefully
Whilst you may often be prescribed medicine and other various behaviours that will help you in your recovery, it is still important to listen to everything they say. Not only does this mean that you will be able to complete all of the recovery steps more thoroughly but it may also prompt further questions. As is mentioned above, you want to make sure that you have all of your questions answered so you are as well informed as possible.
Showing that you are willing to listen is also likely to mean that your provider is going to take more care with you and provide you with more detail and potentially a more personal service as you are helping to build a relationship.
David Smith was born and raised in Calgary Alberta and loves to share his passion for health and fitness with others. Apart from running his own podcast, which uploads weekly shows that covers current health trends, he spends his time canoeing and backpacking. David recently spent a summer working at the CFIA as a health supplement reviewer. In regards to academics, David studied kinesiology at Guelph University.
