Communication with health care providers key to proper care

I’m readying for a somewhat extended surgical stay in the hospital. I know in the past you’ve advised what to do in preparation and while a patient. Please provide more current tips that I can hand-carry as necessary for self-protection. – Peter Prepared

Dear Mr. Prepared: Your question is a perfect example of Murphy’s Law as I’m now still recovering from January surgery with a long recuperation. I’m delighted to voice what works best in communicating with medical providers and staff before, during, and after your operation.

Scarily enough, misdiagnosis often occur because of the lack of proper communication between clinicians, patients, and families. For example, this winter saw an-almost epidemic of flu; with 25 patients who just entered the understaffed, overloaded emergency room, sometimes the assumption

is also the flu when the 26th person appears at the ER desk. This theory could be catastrophic for the patient with another type of emergency and maybe even warrant future malpractice charges against the hospital.

In fact, according to AARP, not only does the medical system not always make on-target diagnoses a priority but, also, doctors don’t even discover if they’re later proven to be wrong!

Let’s take the process in steps. Before the big day:

Be certain someone accompanies you to the preopt appointment with your surgeon; many people don’t realize this is our right to have someone with us to ask questions and to clarify information. While certainly a stressful visit, it’s still imperative all Doc’s information is relayed so you understand exactly what’s in store and what to do to organize yourself beforehand. This is no time to wait until the knife comes down before recalling that last important question you neglected to ask earlier.

Assuming surgery is the last resort, your primary care doctor or specialist has sent you to the best surgeon. Proper diagnosis is crucial; otherwise, you might enter the hospital for the wrong reason, endure improper surgery, and undergo severe repercussions. (You, of course, have researched this surgeon up the ying-yang.)

Remember, too, volume relates to skill so choose that practitioner who has performed the procedure at minimum hundreds of times. Hospitals that have converted to electronic medical records are shown to improve patient safety; this data allows the staff to more easily track and analyze safety metrics and digitized records to which patients have access tend to permit better outcomes, as well. And, finally, be sure Doctor Delightful has operating privileges at the hospital of your choice; frankly, out of our three, major local hospitals, don’t take me to one of these unnamed institutions, unless I’m at death’s door and only 1/10 of a mile away from Hellish Hospital’s ER.

Get the surgeon’s information/instructions in written form and, perhaps, accompanied by pictures if that helps you better understand what’s to occur. According to Bottom Line Health, statistics show that simple, verbal, medical instructions are retained at the pitiful rate of 14 percent, whereas 85 percent is retained when provided with text and a visual. (By the way, just to cover all bases, be sure your advocate also takes notes during the visit. Another proposal is to record what the doctor says during the appointment; just be certain to ask first ask permission to tape.)

Even though you’ll do the same for your hospital pre-admission exam, take a list of all medicines to the pre-opt visit. Your surgeon needs to know what prescription drugs you take, as well as all OTC meds. (As I’ve suggested in the past, a small laminated list of meds and providers for one’s wallet or billfold is the handiest little document around.) AARP tell us that in a 2015 study, half of all drug administrations during or around the time of surgeries involved a glitch of some kind – all either potentially harmful or actually injurious. Worse, almost 80 percent were preventable.