Improving Doctor-Patient Communication | Lizzie Cremer | TEDxTrumanStateUniversity

Lizzie Cremer is a pre-med student with Ehler-Danlos syndrome. She has seen, first-hand, the dangers of failure in doctor-patient communication. Lizzie has left appointments feeling invalidated and denied empathy. She argues that communication between doctors and patients must be improved in order to ensure that all patients receive adequate care.
Lizzie is a Biochemistry major with minors in Statistics and Disability Studies. “Improving Doctor-Patient Communication.” This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at www.ted.com/tedx

[@Paul-ur5kc]

Excellent, Lizzie. More people like you are desperately needed in the world.

[@ashleyrippentrop]

Preach! Thank you for speaking about this. From a fellow POTS patient and chronic illness warrior.

[@lizziecremer1437]

Thank you Ashely!!

[@lunaazzurra7995]

If all med students had to have had first hand experience of any sort of major, chronic, or invisible illness...we would not have this problem. Good for her. Having three invisible chronic illnesses the worst thing I hear all the time ..."oh but you look good"....that's along with being labelled a 'drug seeker'...etc etc.... Labels are for jars,not for people. Thanx for this great talk by someone with a great future in medicine. BTW I do have footnote to my comment after watching this talk again.....I would also like to say that DESPITE having 3 incurable and inextricably linked illnesses....my life has been so much the richer for it. Because despite meeting many many drs and other healthcare workers who fail miserably on the empathy and knowledge and decent old bedside manner...if I had not had thirty years of all of this I would have missed out on meeting some of THE most profoundly beautiful,dedicated and special people anyone would be lucky to have met. I feel this lovely young lady will someday be a doctor like that and a human being like that to her patients and fellow human beings too. Thanx again Lizzie .

[@lizziecremer1437]

Thank you for your comment Luna. I have to agree that I am grateful for having my illness, despite the chronic pain I experience. It has shaped me into the person I am and I have met so many wonderful and caring people because of it. I wish you well

[@DrAmanKapoor]

Spot on!! This is so true unfortunately. It feels bad that this is quite prevalant ... Thanks for putting this through so frankly and clearly

[@pranjl]

Excellent talk, thank you for sharing for your wisdom.

[@syepha_alhabshee]

Empathy is the hardest to get unless that person has gone through it or realized about it or their loved ones gone through it.. Otherwise, it will be really hard to get help for physical invisible illness but always believe that you will someday meet good doctors, expertise and support group to help you. You just cannot give up on yourself, God will meet you with those who understands your pain and you will be healed. But recovery do take some time...

[@b-utifulbruiser3693]

I've been begging God to help me for 16 years.

[@nozyspy4967]

Excellent talk!

[@rosemarymoore3592]

Well done Lizzie. About time!

[@smily6781]

Doctor patient communication Empathy- identify the pt emotion Energy - burnout must decreased Using sensory signals to identify the patient emotions..

[@carolbenack5960]

Absolutely phenominal speaking Lizzie !

[@tyshields1074]

Doctor communication is often stunted due to a doctor’s personal bias that could impede the patient's correct treatment and quality of treatment. Cremer addresses that oftentimes how patients show up in the office may be deceiving and doctors need to look past just the outside appearance and listen and believe the patient's internal experience as this is just as important. One time I had a patient that smelled so bad I couldn’t focus on what they were saying and needed. I had to step out to gather myself before preceding to make sure I gave them the best quality of care and didn’t come across as disinterested. If patients are not believed by their doctors, it leads them to feel as if it is “all in their head” or makes them feel crazy for feeling a certain way on the inside. If doctors do not listen and believe their patients it leads to a delay in a diagnosis increasing health concerns among their patients and increasing the significance of their physical ailments and conditions. The decreased reliance on emotional intelligence and the increased reliance on computers and science solely often lead to the gaslighting of their patients, misdiagnosis, and delayed treatment that could be essential to that client's survival. It is a doctor's primary responsibility to provide patient-centered care, not scientific-centered care, and failing to believe a patient’s story is not only unethical but it is the result of a lack of empathy and the breakdown of the doctor-patient relationship entirely. When doctors attribute the symptoms to a mental disorder without proper investigation, they work outside their scope of practice, but they increase the stigma many patients face, are involved in medical malpractice, and delay the treatment of their patients who need physical attention. Falsely attributing a patient's symptoms to a mental health condition can result in a total loss of credibility and trust among the patient as they often feel that their concerns are being undervalued and overlooked which could lead to a significant impact on the patient's emotional and physical wellbeing. The severe consequences on a patient's health when their doctors do not take their symptoms seriously based on personal bias, can lead to the worsening of their health condition. This could be in the form of taking the wrong medication or their health condition could go untreated and grow in severity.

[@tommy_ranger]

Great presentation Lizzie! Fellow student here, could you cite your research sources please?

[@diabagchi]

Yes

[@JuliettW93]

What is the company name providing the training for doctors ?? I'm interested

[@Easy_medicine_USMLE]

All right

[@lukevin8289]

Nice

[@DaRyteJuan]

Doctors also don’t factor in patients who are on an SSRI or other kind of antidepressant. Something they say or do can send one of these patients into a downward spiral. If it doesn’t culminate in an attempt at suicide, it can destabilize a patient so much their fragile lives start imploding.

[@ApastronRetro]

They do not even cite "Tingue's communication non-response model" hummmm

[@FortheBudgies]

She didn't even get to the whole concept of "pain catastrophizing" and how it predicts chronic pain, and how it's patients over blowing their pain and disability that predicted chronic pain. How about having doctors assume you are over exaggerating and telling you to be more positive is leading to chronic pain?

[@DigitalWolfProductions]

First

[@DigitalWolfProductions]

Nice comment

[@Panda-nk4ec]

"We must acknowledge that doctors are people". I would change one thing in her statement by replacing the word 'people' with 'pieces of sh*t'.

[@skabdulla1633]

is this a Ted talk just saying her frustration talk...! literally waste 12 mints

[@FortheBudgies]

umm, she was listing statistics in bias in diagnosis and treating chronic pain, not just her own frustrations