If you need any kind of medical care, you will need to spend some time making sure that those who are delivering it are adept at what they are doing. This is the kind of thing that can be hard to know upfront, and sometimes it takes a lot of time before you can work it out. But there are actually a number of signs you can look out for if you are keen to ensure that your care is going to be of the highest quality. In this post, let’s take a look at just a few of these, to give you some idea of the sort of thing you can look out for to make sure you get the care you really need.
Reputation
Clearly, one of the best ways to find out the real worth of medical employees is to look into what kind of reputation they have. If there is a lot of talk of them providing a consistently high level of care, you won’t have any reason to be concerned. But how do you actually go about finding the evidence for their reputation? There are a number of ways to do this. The Internet is a particularly good tool for these reasons, and searching for the medical professional or the institution you are visiting is a strong start to finding out more about them. You should also ask in the local area anyone you know, as this can be a potential goldmine of information.
History
As well as how they are generally received by those in the local community, you will also want to delve at least a little into their actual history. After all, reputation can be influenced by all sorts of factors, and it is hard to tell how much of it is personal. But the actual history of medical professionals cannot easily be disputed. Look into whether there are any shadows there – any medical malpractice lawsuits or a large number of complaints is likely to be a bad sign. Also, look for how much experience they have. If they are to be performing surgery, for example, it will be on record how many times they have performed it already. This can help you to make your decision of where to go.
Relationship
Something you can’t overlook the importance of your relationship to the medical professional in question. This is hugely important, as it will likely dictate the sort of care that you receive. If you feel that you really can’t get on with them at all for whatever reason, that is unlikely to bode very well, especially if you are going to be having to get a lot of care from them in the future. If the relationship is not great, consider going somewhere else if you have the option, or working to improve the relationship as much as you can if you don’t have the option.
Top photo: Pexels photo, CC0.
We are blessed, we have a wonderful GP surgery, accessible doctors and nurses, easy to access home visits for my parents and freedom to ask questions and speak freely and frankly. When we lived in other areas of the city we were not so lucky at all. Friends of mine can wait weeks to get a Dr’s appointment.
Essential tips Christy. I’m well aware about doing my homework when it comes to doctors. :) <3
Great post Christy,
I agree. A bad relationship can produce a lot of stress, and with that to endanger our health.Thank you
Yes, we really need to look into these points before seeking a medical support, else it may lead to a bitter experience!
Great advice Christy! One thing I realized with my own family is that when you don’t feel well it’s so important to feel comfortable enough to ask questions. As you mentioned, if you don’t have that relationship, you won’t do that and asking questions is the most important thing to understanding your next steps when you don’t feel well!
Love your posts! Thank you for sharing Christy!
Without a trusting healthcare relationship, no healing can take place. Thanks for your great post Christy.
I agree, Christy. A good relationship with your medical profession is so important. When I first moved to a new State, I saw five Gastrointestinal doctors before finding the right fit for me. It was worth the search.