Getting the Best Out of Medical Consultations
Seeing your Doctor or Consultant
Have you ever come away from a visit to your doctor or consultant and thought, ‘Why didn’t I ask him about …?’ or ‘Why didn’t I ask her what she meant when she said …?’
Many people come away from medical consultations feeling dissatisfied and frustrated – they feel unheard, and that their needs and feelings have not been taken into account.
Before your consultation
Before you go to your consultation it’s worth making the time and effort to compile a short list containing the following information:
- What you hope to gain from the meeting.
- Your main reason for seeing the doctor.
- Any new symptoms.
- Any medication you have been prescribed, and its effect on you.
It’s also useful to be able to describe accurately the pain and how it affects you. Take these points into consideration:
- What does the pain stop you from doing? (e.g. working, sleeping, socialising, etc.)
- What makes the pain better/worse?
- Is the pain different from before?
- What you have done to try to relieve the pain?
- Any complementary or alternative therapies you have tried.
- What is your biggest worry about the pain?
During the Consultation
Remember – the pain is what you say it is. It is YOUR pain and you know how it interferes with the quality of your life.
- Don’t be afraid to speak up for yourself – no-one knows what you want unless you tell them. If you think a certain treatment may be helpful – ask for it. The answer may not be positive but at least you won’t come away from the consultation regretting not having spoken up. You will know where you stand.
- Doctors may sometimes use medical jargon that you may not understand. If you don’t understand, say so, and keep asking the doctor to explain until you are sure you understand fully and feel you have all the information available.
- If you are prescribed a drug or a course of treatments your doctor should tell you all about it, how a drug works and possible side-effects. Feel at liberty to ask what the alternatives are, and/or if there’s anything you can do to help yourself.
- If you have difficulty in saying what you want, it is a good idea to practice beforehand, either out aloud by yourself, or together with a friend.
- It is also useful to be able to describe how much pain you have at any time. To give it a number on a scale is far more understandable to your doctor than to say the pain is ‘unbearable’ or ‘awful’. Make a note of pain levels after activities that either increase/decrease the pain or to measure how much worse/better the pain is now compared to the last time you saw the doctor.Use the scale below to measure your pain.
| How the Pain Affects You | ||
| No pain | ||
| Mild Pain – aware only if thinking about it. | ||
| Moderate Pain – can be ignored at times. | ||
| Fairly Severe Pain – painful but can continue tasks. | ||
| Very Severe Pain – concentration difficult, can only do undemanding tasks. | ||
| The Worst I can Imagine – incapacitating pain, can do almost nothing. |
An Operation or Treatment?
If an operation is suggested, there are various questions that need answers beforeyou agree to surgery. You could ask your surgeon/consultant questions such as:
- What is the success rate?
- Are there any complications that can be expected?
- Will you do the operation/treatment yourself?
- How many of these operations have you done in the last 12 months?
- How long will I have to wait?
- How long will my recovery period be?
- Will my condition deteriorate again after the operation/treatment?
- What alternative treatments are available?
Remember, you are entitled to ask these questions, and any others you may think of, before you agree to an operation. You need these facts in order to make an informed judgement as to whether to go ahead or not. You are also entitled to a second opinion if you are not comfortable with the advice given.
- When you go the doctor, take your notes with you to remind you what you want to ask.It may help to take someone with you to give you support whilst you are waiting for your appointment and/or to accompany you during the consultation. After the visit, the other person will help you to remember what the doctor said.
- Finally, if you think it might be necessary for you to have an actual examination, it would be a good idea to wear clothes that are easily removed.
Pain Logs
At some stage you may find it helpful to complete a ‘pain diary’ or ‘pain log’. It’s helpful to complete each record for about a week. The pain log might be just for your own personal interest or perhaps to show to your doctor/therapist/family/friends to help them understand how your pain affects you. Print as many copies as you need of each log.
The Pain Levels log below will be a record of your actual pain level.
Pain Levels Log Download PDF
The Pain, Feelings and Activity log below will help you to discover how your activities and feelings may affect your pain.
Pain/Feelings/Activity Download PDF
Diagnosis Check List
More information and a useful check list for you to fill in before your consultation:
Diagnosis Check List download PDF
Seek extra advice and support from our Discussion Forum.
