Google VS Doctor – A Trust War for Patients

“I know, I have read it on Google about this disease”, says a patient.

The doctor-patient relationship can be weird due to apparently negligible constraint, such as they tend to offer you best care within the 20 or so minutes allotted for a typical clinic visit. However, you must remember that a doctor’s time is always precious and they need to make every minute count, which irritates most of patients and they complain about doctor’s lack of attention towards them. Despite the short span, other patients seem to be satisfied with their doctors.

Patients tend to be an open book to their doctors but remember, your doctor is not – and it is your mistake if you do not consider it so. A survey was conducted to understand the doctors’ side narration, where besides talking about their professional challenges; they spilled beans on what patients must already know in order to create a smooth doctor-patient relationship.

Just Spill it Right Away

To get the most from your short visit, at first, your doctor wants to know the reason why you are there. Do not assume that he is a doctor so he will find out himself what you are secretly worried about – whether it’s chest pain, tingling feeling in your throat, asthma bout or a mole behind your ear. Just speak up, right away. Do not make him examine your ingrown nail, if you are there to get cured for chest pain. Make him spend time on your major area of concern and later talk about other complaints.

Be Honest with Them

Whether you have taken tons of ibuprofen for knee pain or have swallowed antibiotics to treat self-diagnosed ear infection – at least, be honest and tell your doctor. Remember, if you have been taking antibiotic for a week for bacterial infection and not getting better – it means, you may not have bacterial infection. Come up with nothing but truth because treatment mostly depends upon what patients tell doctors. If your blood pressure is high even after taking regular medicines – the doctor may add a new medicine, considering it that your body is being resistant to old medicine. On the contrary, the truth is that you are not taking medicine at all. If you want your healthier version, you must tell the truth to your doctor.

Internet is not Your Doctor

It is good that patients are finding a doctor online and are well-aware nowadays as they read about their condition on the internet but do not forget the fact that internet is not your doctor. You can get the best remedy for the disease you have, but can’t get a 100% surety if the information is right. The internet is swarmed with more misinformation than information. Most of the doctors are not convinced that online research is of much help. Besides that arguing with your doctor on something that you have read online is of no use, so do not spend time and money on printouts, and also do not expect them to read all those articles.