“If you’re not an animal person,” the nurse educator told me, “it can be hard to understand how much pets mean to your patients with pets. What you’ve written will help providers understand that.” So if you’re not particularly an animal person, this episode is for you. If, on the other hand, you ARE an […]
Connect with patients who don’t talk like you do
“I want to help these moms talk to their babies,” the physician told me. “Who? What do you mean?” I asked. She gave me a quick overview of a study she’d learned about: “There was a recorder that transcribed the number of words and type of words that they used – more educated people—[there was] […]
A quick breakdown of some health literacy basics
“When I say ‘health literacy,’ what does that mean to you?” I asked 4 physicians this question. I got 4 very different answers. And all of them were ‘right.’ As health professionals, you care about health literacy. I know this because when I’ve done in-person talks, nothing has drawn more attention and put more butts […]
What to do when you feel a cultural gap between you and your patient
One of the most common sentiments I have heard from providers is their concern that they are not connecting with patients when they seem to have little in common. This makes sense; in general, it’s easier for us to communicate with people when we feel we have plenty in common. But since you interact with people […]
1 thing you can do to save time in patient education
The nurse administrator looked at me and said, “Time. Everything is about time.” I had asked her about some front-burner issues she was facing in the oncology department. She continued, with a look on her face that was almost apologetic. “The docs want more time with their patients. They want more time.” Over the course […]
Providers, your language may have more power than you realize (Revisited)
It seems each of us knows someone who has cancer, is in recovery from cancer, or has died from cancer. Near the start of this year, we ran an article (and later a podcast episode) called “Providers, your language may have more power than you realize.” That article begins with a recollection from a woman […]