Making Meaningful Connections With Your Patients Be Efficient

Many physicians believe that there is no time to really connect with patients. With decreased reimbursements, many practices are scheduling more patients to sustain their income. Many employed physicians have set RVUs to meet. As a result, many physicians are constantly rushing, doing their best to take care of a patient in a timely fashion, before taking care of the next patient.

Day in and day out, the focus has become only addressing the presenting problems of each patient. Although there is the desire to connect with the patient, this has become secondary and possibly a luxury to have.

What if I tell you that it is possible to connect with the patients and be efficient at the same time? It is possible not having to sacrifice one over the other.

I used to believe that you have to spend extra time, the time you do not have, with each patient to have a more personal relationship with the patient. As I was constantly struggling to stay afloat in the sea of unfinished charts, it was difficult to think about much else other than the burden of those patient charts.

It is essential to get out of survival mode. Identify the main reason for barely getting by instead of thriving. Is it because of the long working hours? Is it because of not having the harmony of work and life? When you are in survival mode, all you care about is how not to die or fail. You do not have the capacity to create deeper connections with your patients.

Meaningful connection with a patient is not defined by how much time you spend with that patient. I am grateful for this as I enjoy connecting with patients on a deeper level. It turns out that your concept of time affects many things, including how you interact with your patients. When you think that there is not enough time, you feel rushed, inadequate, possibly frustrated or helpless. When you are experiencing any of those emotions, connecting with the patient is not your top priority.

The connection starts with your desire to connect. Connect with love and kindness. Connect with curiosity. Connect because you want to. Connect in a way that your patient feels seen and heard.

When you walk into the exam room, greet your patient with a smile. I mean a genuine smile of welcome. A genuine smile of “I am here to help”. Sense the tone in the room – is it tense or relaxed? What is the patient trying to tell you without saying it out loud? Observe the body language.

Take a seat. Standing up gives the impression of rushing, of having no time (to sit down) to connect. Stay attentive. Listen to what the patient has to tell you. Let the patient know that you are there for them, physically and emotionally. Sometimes a sentence is enough to make the connection. No matter what the situation is or who the patient is, be yourself.

You probably will not have meaningful connections with every single patient and that is okay. Give yourself the permission to connect the best way that you can, and if the patient does not wish to reciprocate your reaching out, let it be.

When you are no longer in survival mode, you have the mental capacity to create meaningful connections with your patients, if you desire to. Be genuine. Let your patients know you want to know them at a deeper level. Pay attention to their spoken and unspoken languages. Do not feel rushed. Tell yourself that you will have enough time to take care of the patient’s diagnosis and to know them as a human being.