Be compliant and your doctor will trust you!
Patient: When do you want to see me again, doc?
Doctor: It all depends!
It depends on your age, your condition, your understanding, your compliance with the therapeutic plan and it may depend on your finances. But a better question might be why you should return at a particular time. If your doctor trusts you, he or she will probably gladly relinquish much of your care to you, the patient.
For example, if you don’t take your medicine correctly, doctors don’t want to be held responsible. Take the case of a diabetic (who knows better) but doesn’t take his insulin correctly, and his blood sugars end up being too high or too low. He could end up in a coma – or worse. No doctor can help a patient who won’t help himself. For patients that a doctor can trust to do the right thing, those more reliable patients do not need to be seen as frequently.
Your doctor will trust you to return less often if you share an understanding of your treatment. Doctors are more likely to trust patients who:
- Show up for their appointments
- Know their medications
- Understand their condition or illness
- Take care of themselves
Using diabetes as an example again, if you control your blood sugar, along with your cholesterol and blood pressure, the interval between visits might be stretched from say, three months to four months, saving you the cost of one office visit and one set of blood work per year, easily over $100. The same applies for other chronic conditions and illnesses such as asthma, depression, and high blood pressure.
CRM Tip: The point here is to take control of your health care, not compromise it. Be responsible and your doctor will learn to trust you and you will be able to come less often.
Student Health & Wellness 