Listen to Your Patient

[摘要] Do we listen to women? Do we really listen towhat they are telling us? The research behindthe Department of Health and Social Care’srecent Women’s Health Strategy for Englandsuggests we don’t — ‘not being listenedto’ is the common thread that underpinsthe responses informing the strategy.Women described how their symptomswere not taken seriously by healthcareprofessionals, and self-advocating to get theright management. I see parallels in otherreports: the All Party Parliamentary Group onEndometriosis described women waiting anaverage of 8years for their diagnosis despite58% of women visiting their GP 10 times ormore with symptoms. What women want issimple: they want to be listened to, believed,and taken seriously by their doctors, but theiroften convoluted diagnostic journeys amonga range of conditions demonstrates how thisdoes not always happen.

[学科分类] 卫生学