These topics are covered in my MPL podcast:
- Explanation of the diagnoses issued by doctors: what do they mean and how bad the condition is
- Explanation of the medical terminology
- Examination of widespread diseases
- Help with preparing for medical investigations including endoscopy, gastroscopy, etc.
- Discussion of the symptoms and their meaning
- Explanation of the first-aid actions that need to be taken even before visiting the doctor
- Scrutiny of various diets
A few words about this project:
"MEDICINE IN THE LANGUAGE OF THE PATIENT"
Thank you to everyone who supported me in creating this podcast!
After one of my patients asked me "Alla Yuriivna, can you translate this to a non-medical language?", I realized that while trying to provide my clients with the maximum amount of information, I have to deal with the fact that not all of them understand the specific language of medical terms. This incident completely changed the way I communicate with my patients. I call it “non-medical language”.
It was difficult at first because my fifteen years of work in medical services made me used to the sophisticated language with which doctors communicate their medical findings. I believed that the more Latin and medical terms I knew, the higher my level of knowledge and expertise was. Although this statement is entirely valid, the usage of high-level medical language did not help to reach an understanding with the patients at all. With time came the realization that there should be a simplified way of explaining the essence of the problem to patients with non-medical backgrounds.
In the Soviet and early post-Soviet times the idea of complete trust in doctor’s opinions was advocated to the patients. So, people were used to not questioning the diagnoses they received from their doctors. I was lucky to arrive at the medical theater at a time of great transformation when one had to answer questions that no one dared to set forth before. Luckily, I found the optimal approach to tackle this problem. The main difference of my method is in trying to see the situation through the eyes of the patient, imagine how he/she might have understood it.
I remember my childhood encounters with doctors when simply asking doctor a question was already a big challenge. In Soviet times the doctor's prescription was a law and the situation when it didn’t help or even made it worse was called something like “an unfortunate progression of the disease”.
Already at the medical school, I realized the existence of irresponsible practice when some doctors are giving recommendations that could potentially lead to the patient’s disability or even death. Today, when medical services are expensive, people usually try to understand their prescriptions and diagnoses. Medical awareness is especially high in Ukraine where people are trying to be experts in nearly everything including the interpretation of their medical diagnosis and understanding of how the drugs work. Some of these home-made “specialists” present themselves as “media doctors” and are pushing their unprofessional opinions on credulous people increasing the risk of deterioration of their medical condition.
Nowadays a good and thorough consultation is quite common in Ukraine. This makes it possible for a patient to get a clear picture of his/her situation. In many other countries, however, such consultations, even those covered by social insurance, are very short. Is 10 minutes enough to get all the necessary information? My answer is NO! Based on my personal experience I can assure you that this is not enough even for a quick review of the basic analysis of the test results.
Another problem is that after such consultation the patient comes home with more questions than answers. This happens because doctors talk to their patients using high-level medical language, full of specific terms and specialized jargon. I know this because I used to do it myself. This is why I developed a way of communicating with patients that I called “Medicine in the patient’s language”, MPL.
Today I broadcast my knowledge and experience using the MPL approach. As a volunteer and mother of two children, I perfectly understand how difficult it might be to figure out what the diagnosis really means and how exactly to follow the doctor’s advice and do the treatment the right way. So, join my YouTube channel where the medical topics will be explained in clear and simple words!
Wish you all good health and hope to see you soon on my YouTube channel!
