Many patients report two situations with their doctors that bother them the most: (1) arriving for a doctor’s appointment on time only to be told that the doctor “is running late,” which results in the patient sitting in the waiting room for over an hour beyond their scheduled appointment time, and then waiting again in the exam room for the doctor to appear, and (2) the doctor failing to return telephone calls and failing to contact patients regarding the results of lab tests and other diagnostic procedures.
Situation (2)
Patients and their faimilies are often in emotional turmoil when their doctor suspects, or wants to rule out, a serious (or worse) medical condition. Time moves excruciatingly slowly when waiting for the results of a biopsy to determine if a patient has cancer – life comes to a standstill – waiting, waiting, waiting …
A common belief among patients waiting longer than they feel is reasonable for a return call from their doctor is that the doctor believes that their time is more important than the patients’ time, or that the doctor does not appreciate the harm that their delays in timely communicating with their patients are causing their patients. How often have you felt that your doctor was disingenuous in apologizing for being late in seeing you for an office visit, especially after you heard two other patients in the waiting room advising the receptionist that their appointment times were the same as your’s?
There should be very few legitimate excuses for a doctor not returning your telephone call in a timely fashion. Your doctor accepted the responsibility to address your health care needs when the doctor accepted you as their patient, and an important health care need is to have your concerns addressed in a timely fashion.
One bright spot that may help in getting your doctor to communicate with you in a more timely manner is the expanding availability and use of so-called patient portals, which are secure (supposedly) online methods of not only accessing some of your medical records (including some test results) but also providing a method of communicating with your doctor directly by leaving a message in their inbox. Many doctors are more comfortable communicating by this method because they are more accustomed to and comfortable with communicating on their computer, and this method of communication allows for doctors to respond on their timeline – while they may not return your telephone call at 10 p.m., they may send you a message through the patient portal at that time.
Will online communication replace in person or telephone communication between doctors and their patients? Probaby not: one reason is that in person voice communication allows for important nonverbal messaging – such as facial expressions and tone of voice – that can express more than just words on a computer screen. Compassion is best expressed in person, and not online.
Your doctor should have another important incentive to timely return your telephone calls – it has been estimated that 27% of medical malpractice is the result of communication failures. Source Most complaints about doctors are related to issues of communication, not clinical competency. Patients want doctors who can skillfully diagnose and treat their sicknesses as well as communicate with them effectively.
Doctors with better communication and interpersonal skills are able to detect problems earlier, can prevent medical crises and expensive intervention, and provide better support to their patients. This may lead to higher-quality outcomes and better satisfaction, lower costs of care, greater patient understanding of health issues, and better adherence to the treatment process. There is currently a greater expectation of collaborative decision making, with physicians and patients participating as partners to achieve the agreed upon goals and the attainment of quality of life. Source
If you or a loved one were injured (or worse) as a result of medical malpractice in the United States, you should promptly find a medical malpractice lawyer in your state who may investigate your medical malpractice claim for you and represent you or your loved one in a medical malpractice case, if appropriate.
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