Cancer Fighters Thrive is a quarterly print and online magazine bringing readers practical, innovative and inspirational information about cancer treatment and survivorship.
Issue link: http://cancerfightersthrive.epubxp.com/i/61344
COVER STORY BUILDING A HEALTHY PATIENT/PHYSICIAN RELATIONSHIP What physicians can do What patients can do LISTEN. 4AKE THE TIME TO REALLY HEAR WHAT YOUR PATIENTS ARE TELLING YOU ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCE ASK QUESTIONS. 7RITE DOWN QUESTIONS AHEAD OF TIME AND MAKE SURE YOU GET ANSWERS )F YOU DON T UNDERSTAND SOMETHING KEEP ASKING UNTIL YOU DO through, what her knowledge was, and every option she gave me. She never gave me that 100 percent guarantee." From there the relationship unfolded. Pam found a place where she could be real. She let her guard down, she cried, she asked questions, and she shared her fears. She also found the strength to keep enjoying her life. Both Pam and Dr. Kazmi recount the story of Pam's new kickboxing habit. "I will never forget the look on Dr. Kazmi's face when I told her that I had started kickboxing," Pam laughs. "People with cancer in their bones probably shouldn't be kickboxing." Dr. Kazmi took it in stride. "Pam told me that she really en- joyed it and that it made her feel like a real person," Dr. Kazmi recalls. "I just sat back and laughed and told her that as long as she was very careful, it was okay. She knows I'd rather she didn't do it, but I'd rather know about it. If it's important to her, it's okay with me. " This kind of openness between doctors and patients is critical, Dr. Kazmi says: "The more open they can be, the more you can learn and the more you can enhance treatment." Dr. Kazmi makes this sense of openness a priority. She wants her patients to be able to live as normal a life as possible. Pam sensed this—she felt like she really mattered and that Dr. Kazmi wanted the best for her. "I need the warm and fuzzy," Pam says, "and I need to know that I'm not just a number. I know she has a full life. She has many, many patients. But she'll take 45 minutes to an hour with me and never makes me feel like I need to rush or like I'm messing up someone else's appointment." Perhaps the bottom line is that Pam simply felt comfortable cfthrive.com BE HONEST. 4ELL THE TRUTH WITH COMPASSION AND SENSITIVITY KEEP IT SIMPLE. !VOID JARGON %XPLAIN THINGS IN LAYPERSON S TERMS AND THEN ASK PATIENTS TO SUMMARIZE WHAT THEY HEARD ASK QUESTIONS. ENCOURAGE YOUR PATIENTS TO ALSO ASK QUESTIONS BE OPEN AND HONEST. 3ECRETS CAN HAVE DISASTROUS CONSEQUENCES 9OUR DOCTOR NEEDS TO KNOW IF YOU RE NOT TAKING YOUR MEDICATION OR IF YOU RE TAKING SUPPLEMENTS THAT MIGHT INTERFERE WITH TREATMENT TRUST. 9OUR DOCTOR IS AN EXPERT IN CANCER 9OU ARE THE EXPERT IN YOU 4OGETHER YOU CAN ACHIEVE EXCELLENT RESULTS 7ORK WITH YOUR DOCTOR NOT AGAINST HIM OR HER SEE THE INDIVIDUAL. !LL PATIENTS ARE DIFFERENT AND HAVE DIFFERENT NEEDS GET COMFORTABLE. )F YOU RE NOT COMFORTABLE WITH YOUR PHYSICIAN DON T HESITATE TO SWITCH 4HIS IS YOUR LIFE—AND YOU SHOULD FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH YOUR DOCTOR BE VULNERABLE. 2EVEAL YOURSELF—THE REAL YOU 9OUR DOCTOR WILL BE BETTER ABLE TO TREAT YOU IF HE OR SHE SEES AND UNDERSTANDS THE FULL YOU NOT JUST THE CANCER summer 2012 | cancer fighters thrive 27