In the ideal doctor-patient situation the primary care physician should initiate discussion when the patient is not acutely ill. However, this often is not the case and therefore these discussions frequently occur in the hospital setting. Regardless of the setting, good medical practice includes having these discussions. Thus, medical students and residents should engage the patients they are caring for in these discussions.
In the ideal doctor-patient situation the primary care physician should initiate discussion when the patient is not acutely ill. However, this often is not the case and therefore these discussions frequently occur in the hospital setting. Regardless of the setting, good medical practice includes having these discussions. Thus, medical students and residents should engage the patients they are caring for in these discussions. If the patient has been recently diagnosed with a terminal or life changing condition, has severe depression, demonstrates paranoid ideation, or is suicidal, you should ask the responsible attending physician whether this is an appropriate time to raise these issues. Otherwise, you should initiate the discussions and request faculty support (such as role modeling or mentoring) if needed. You should review the framing of the discussion and the patient’s views with the attending physician responsible for the patient’s overall care.
