Collaboration is the key to a
successful doctor’s visit, and
this starts with keeping your
appointments. Visit your doctor
regularly even if you have not
taken your medications or have
been unable to do your blood
tests. Additionally, know what
you can do to ensure that your
appointment goes seamlessly.
1. Arrive early: For public clinic
appointments, there are no
scheduled appointment times
and persons have been known to
line up from 1 a.m. This is rarely
necessary. At private clinics, a
phone call to the receptionist
is helpful when you are on your
way because traffic can be
unpredictable due to car accidents,
cruise ships, road works or the
occasional monument unveiling.
You may be called or you can
call to find out whether the clinic
is running on time if there is a
working relationship with the
doctor’s office.
2. Have a list of questions to ask
in office: Most physicians would
agree that any relevant questions
will be answered as thoroughly as
possible during a clinic visit. Write
down your questions, even the
ones that you may have Googled
that you want to put in context.
3. Avoid asking too many personal
medical questions of the doctor
outside the office: You deserve
confidentiality which is best
achieved in a private setting. While
most physicians are pleased to
answer medical questions within
reason during an appointment,
there are places that are not
best for such discussions, such
as supermarkets, hallways or in
the parking lots. This may delay
appointments or be of limited use
since your medical history may not
be recalled in detail without access
to your record.
4. Help to create a positive
compassionate atmosphere in the
waiting area while waiting: Please
bear in mind that the patient
currently in the doctor’s office may
have communication difficulties,
may be very ill, disabled, in pain or
move/speak slowly. This may be
the reason for a longer wait time.
5. Please avoid ‘and one more
thing’ at the end of your visit:
The encounter with the doctor
has a general structure. After
one medical condition has been
assessed and management
discussed, saying “one more thing”
and naming another symptom such
as chest pain resets the encounter
to the beginning.
6. Be ready: Have all necessary
information with you, including
previous blood tests, your last
prescription and medications
obtained or not obtained from
the pharmacy. This information
is essential to complete your
encounter in case of server issues
or electrical power outage/black
out-related loss of computer
access.
7. One family member only: Have
just one representative family or
friend with you who can assist
you if you need an interpreter
or if you anticipate any trouble
communicating with your doctor.
This representative should be
focused on helping you and can
book a separate visit if he/she has
personal complaints to mention as
well.
8. Remember to talk about your
symptoms instead of requesting
medications: Unless you just
need a repeat prescription,
naming tablets that you want
such as sleeping tablets or pain
medications will result in the
question: Why? The duration of
the prescription depends on your
medical condition and a repeat
may not be advisable.
9. Be sure that you understand
your management plan by
repeating what your doctor says
to you about your diagnosis,
investigations and what you can
do next.
www.slyoumag.com | February - April 2020
10. If you are hoping for sick
leave, say so immediately and
then describe your symptoms: A
doctor is not obligated to fill out
the sick leave form or to give you
the amount of time that you prefer,
but can assess you based on your
complaint and how this affects
your ability to work.
11. Manage your phone calls:
Your doctor’s appointment will
be delayed by your phone calls
during the appointment. It is best
to contact your concerned family
member or workplace just before
you enter the office so that your
visit is uninterrupted.
12. Hiding previous diagnoses
from your doctor can harm you:
There may be discrepancies with
interpretation of your results and
repeated steps of management
that have a financial or time cost
if you hide your diagnoses. There
are new medications to treat
chronic illnesses so take heart and
be honest with your physician.
The success of your doctor’s visit
depends on it.
Dr. Takira Glasgow graduated from Mc
Gill University with her first degree and
the University of the West Indies with
her medical degree. She completed her
Masters in Diabetes with Distinction
in the UK. After working at Queen
Elizabeth Hospital, Barbados, and
Victoria Hospital, Saint Lucia, her
private office located at Tapion was
opened in 2012 where she has been
managing clients with diabetes almost
exclusively since then.
Her memberships include the American
Association of Clinical Endocrinology,
Associate Membership of the Royal
College of Physicians and the Healthy
Caribbean Coalition. Her publications
and articles have appeared in the
Journal of Biomedical Science and
Engineering, Saint Lucia Business Focus
and the Bar Association’s publication,
“The Brief”.
She has appeared on local radio and
television programmes, including “Your
Diabetes Health” and “Health Notes”.
SL-YOU | It’s All About Business 83