I visited my urologist last week because I am an old man with stupid problems. However, this is not about that but about the difference in my medical practitioners' methodologies.
My former and now retired guy would have had a bulging folder on his desk containing documents of all of our past dealings. I am not sure that he ever looked at it, but there it would sit. During the consultation, he would jot quick notes on the cover of the file folder. Indeed, the cover of my folder became rather full of his jottings. At the end of our lovely time together, before he spoke a few parting words, he would have me remain sitting there while he relayed his findings into a recorder for the transcriber. I have never heard anyone speak so quickly, with all of his utterances running together in a stream of what seemed to be one very long word. He assured me that the transcriber could understand him.
The new doc had only a very neat one-page printout from the the interim urologist that I had seen in the meantime between the former doc and the new one. At least, I presume that's what it was, but there may have contained other information too. Whatever was on it, I could see that it included a graph. He wrote neat, little notes right on the page. I don't know where it went from there. Did he update my file on the computer as soon as I left, or did that page get passed along to a secretary? Either is possible.
I was quite taken with the contrast from the old to the new. I never saw the former guy with a computer, but that was the other thing on new guy's desk aside from the slim, one-page printout and, definitely, no bulging folder documenting all of my past visits and procedures.
Aside: his desk was high, and he must have had his chair elevated to full height to be level with it. As I sat opposite, the desk was about level with my chest. Too funny: I felt like a munchkin, barely able to get my elbows up onto the surface. I wish I could have walked out with a picture to show Sue.
One thing that I will tell you in passing is that I have learned to spell cystoscopy, and it does not begin with an S.
14 comments:
Not a fun word to learn, AC. Here all medical records are computerized now and available to any doctor one sees. That’s a great improvement.
My doctor inputs straight into her laptop. No paper anywhere that I can see!
Ah, no s to start off, but plenty to middle ground. Desk situation is hilarious! My Dr. has computer screen on the side attached to the wall, and keyboard on a little shelf, all going to a mainframe somewhere else...and he reads my history for a lot of the time, after hearing my complaints...and he now shakes my hand again when he comes in. He brought a medical student with him last week. So all of us discussed my coughing side effects...and Dr. came up with a temporary fix...to use before being referred to a surgeon. It works. No thanks to surgery.
I laughed to picture you feeling like a munchkin. For short people, it's often a way I can cope with being 5'1". :-)
Well, a cyst doesn't sound pleasant. My clinic has a computer in every room, so there are no paper notes at all.
I've gotten anxious about any word ending with scopy these days!
I haven't had a family doctor in coming on five years. On the rare occasions when I do see one of the hospital staff doctors, they all seem to know my history, so it's apparent they have a look at some screen before coming into the room. I have a good friend who is a transcriptionist. Her stories are a HOOT. (no identities given, just funny stuff)
I though they all used computers all the time. I try to avoid Drs if I can.
Now that I think of it, I remember when our doc's office switched to computers, writing in the notes as they took vitals or whatever; pulling up blood tests and xrays. In lots of ways more efficient but if the world crashes, who will know anything?!!!
Then there was the latest snafu with a cyber hack that affected the computers of a huge medical system. They couldn't get to records or even see patients. So your former doc may have had it right. -scopy isn't a suffix I enjoy hearing either!
Ouch!
The recording of medical records has changed immensely. all of my records are on the computer memory stick. All those little pieces of paper concerned me. It was not used.
Our records are available to us, too. Why not!
Cystoscopy? Sounds like a word I'd be just as happy knowing nothing about.
Well, good luck with all that!
We've had 90 doctor's appointments with JB's cancer, and found a wide range of styles!
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