"I did not feel an equal partner at the table"

I was referred to the SDSA unit at Treliske following severe stomach pains the previous day.

The nursing staff were excellent, as was the doctor who gave me the initial assessment. I had blood tests and an x-ray.

My negative feelings result from the meeting I had with the consultant who discharged me.

They made me lie down so that they could examine me, and left me in this awkward prone position, whilst they began to talk about the results of the tests. I didn't get to sit up and discuss the problem eye to eye, which is now considered better practice. 

I was not shown the x-rays.

I felt they were not listening. When they told me I have constipation and I said I haven't, they just shook their head and said yes, you have constipation. I felt I was unable to ask relevant questions about this, such as the possible causes of the problem, and more detail about my symptoms.

I felt that they regarded me as a nervous individual who was over worried about my condition, when in fact I had been in a great deal of pain.

Most importantly, I was told they hoped I hadn't been googling my symptoms.

According to Ilene Kaminsky and Robert Joyce (2021),

'It doesn't reflect well on any medical professional if they are telling us not to get information. If healthcare providers want us, the patient, to trust them, we need to be an equal partner at the table. This builds trust.

And as partners in wellness, it is their responsibility to see to it that we have access to information. Suggesting that we are not to do our own research is not only ridiculous, but also impossible. We'll do it anyway and we won't come to them when we have questions for fear of reprimand. 

Not the healthiest outcome for either patient or physician.'

I feel it would be of great benefit in this online era if more members of the medical profession took this on board instead of reprimanding us for doing our own research. 

At this visit to the SDSA, I did not feel an 'equal partner at the table', but felt I was regarded as an individual who could not possibly understand the workings of their own body.