Watch for the Habit-Change Contest on Monday! 

Wanted:  Good Pain Doctor

• Caring and attentive

• Gives helpful suggestions, and has many other ideas when 1 treatment doesn’t work too well

• Balances listening and asking helpful questions

• Doesn’t interrupt too much

• Believes my reports of pain

Wanted:  Good Patient

• Organized and focused

• Relates a clear story, without too much unnecessary detail

• Prioritizes which symptoms need to be focused on at each visit

• Keeps a log of how she responds to each treatment

• Follows through on taking medication, practicing pain management techniques, etc.

• Not overly dramatic

• Doesn’t expect a miracle

Is this just a fairy tale match?  No, I believe it’s achievable!  Good pain treatment is a collaboration between patient and doctor, both doing whatever they can to decrease pain, make the pain remaining more tolerable, and working together well.

The idea for this post came from a reader, Jeisea, who wanted to know good ways to communicate with doctors.  The ideas above are from my perspective as a physician, and I’ll elaborate more on what doctors want in my next post on Friday.  What other suggestions do you have for what works well for you?

Don’t worry that you need to be a “perfect” patient.  (And any of my patients who read this… you’re doing fine!  :)  There are certainly things you can do to get the most from your doctor appointments, but you also need a good doctor to work with - it takes 2, as they say.

You might also like to read:

• 3 Tips To Tell If You Should Get A New Doc

• Smart Doctor… 10 points.  Waiting Room Magazines From ‘63… Zero Points.  Rating Your Doctor… Priceless!

Reminder… the deadline for submissions for the January Pain-Blog Carnival is Wednesday, January 23.  Submit here. 

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