We hear it every day:
- The doctors won’t return my calls
- The nursing staff didn’t tell me she fell
- I had no idea I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure – shouldn’t they tell me that?
- I can’t go with my Mom the the appointment, so I don’t know what they told her
COVID has made an already broken system of communication much worse. Meaning, most healthcare professionals don’t communicate all of their opinions, observations and diagnosis to patients directly (they put them in the medical record and often fail to communicate them to families). Why? There are many reasons why (lack of time, assume patients won’t understand, patient knowledge isn’t necessary for daily treatment) the real issue is that lack of clear and concise communication causes patient frustration. And worse, sometimes it causes permanent patient injury.
Lauren and Bo discuss the difference between bad communication, and malpractice —
If we can help you evaluate your situation, we would be honored to.
Lauren – lellerman@frithlawfirm.com / Bo – bfrith@frithlawfirm.com
540-985-0098