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SHE Has a Name and Deserves Respect
Shirley, my childhood best-friend’s mother, is in her late 80s. She was quite healthy until a few years ago when she began an ongoing round of very difficult medical problems. She has had surgery, chemo, myriad tests and treatments…. bottom line, she is sick of being sick, and she’s tired of the “if it isn’t one thing, it’s the next” of her life. Her daughter has been a stalwart advocate for Shirley, driving 90 minutes each way, week-in and week-out for years. She attends all her mother’s appointments, takes notes, asks questions, fills prescriptions – in short, all those things we do as advocates, which many of us can relate to. I check in with them both every couple of weeks to see how things are going, to share family stories, to catch up on their lives. One such call happened yesterday… and yielded a point I knew instantly needed to be shared with you. One so important, I’ve written about it on my About.com blog, too. Shirley’s report: “You know – when the doctor is talking, he talks to my daughter – and calls me “She.” He doesn’t talk to me! He talks to her, as if I’m not even in the room.” I can only imagine how insulting this must feel to Shirley – or any patient who is being discussed as if he or she isn’t present. Further, it’s entirely possible the doctor has no idea how he is coming across to her. I’m going to guess you have witnessed this, too. In fact, some of you have done the same thing. In particular with an elderly person, or a patient with dementia, or certainly a young child, it’s so easy to have a conversation with a spouse or adult child or some other caregiver, and discuss the patient as if he or she isn’t present. But, when it comes to any adult patient who is conscious and able to comprehend the discussion, it is highly disrespectful. These patients are not objects to be discussed. They are living, breathing, intelligent human beings. You are discussing THEIR bodies,…