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SO! it occurred to me that i rarely have beef with my patients. now im just a dumb midlevel but here are some thoughts. most of this applies to EM so ignore me 
#MedTwitter #pamedtwitter #physicianassistant https://twitter.com/danielleofri/status/1346525450802253825
#MedTwitter #pamedtwitter #physicianassistant https://twitter.com/danielleofri/status/1346525450802253825
1. Manage expectations. "we are here to rule out life threatening issues, but im also going to try to help you feel better and fix anything else that i can along the way" key point, you gotta at least help/mitigate/reassure/compromise/refer. Bonus points if you make it better
2. Tell them whats up. If some resident is gonna be coming in to poke on their tummy in the night, inform them of such! and explain why! If its gonna be 12 hours to transfer to that fancy hospital, inform them! Lets get everyone on the same page and avoid drama before it happens
3. See #2.. be honest! i dont have time to lie to people dude and neither do you. only exception is when you feel that immobile, spiculated mass.. then you arent quite sure. OK?
4. What did they come for? you can explain the Centor score to the mom who brought her 99.7 F sore throat 6 year old in. Lady came for the strep test. Do the test. She didn't come to see your ass be clever with some app and some numbers. If you're old, this may not apply to you
5. WELCOME BACK. Keep those AMAs nice. Send the meds anyways. I used to work rural and people would get hella fined if their sheep got out. They had to bounce and get their sheep. No shit! Keep your AMAs welcomed "its just paperwork for the boss, man"
5b. This applies to anyone with a newborn/babysitter/bus pass. Do what you can, send meds, explain that its just paperwork to cover your buns and to come back if they can cause we love you. EVEN if they fought with you. We want to see you get better, come back!
6. Assist. I like being an assistant! Remind that one co-worker to eat, cover patients while your homegirl pumps. feed your patients when you can. I spent a summer pulling overdoses out of cars as a PA- just go help!
7. Be a friend and an ally and again BE HONEST. Some dude was going off about our healthcare system in the waiting room, getting people riled up, talking shit and I just told him a few of MY frustrations. Next thing you know im "one of the good ones"
7b. The patient isn't the enemy. Let's all take a moment. Be nice and accommodating. Ketamine. Geodon. Droperidol. Food. Sleep. Yes. Why dont we all see how we feel in the morning?
8. So I guess its: manage expectations, be honest, be helpful, be non-adversarial, and once again manage those expectations. im just a dumb midlevel so go ahead and roast me but at least my pts like me and we get along ok (Big Kate works at a standalone ER in an interesting area)
i've been on the patient side.... thats why its called the patient side. gotta be patient. this process of ours is wack and fucked up but sometimes the only way out is through
PS: call a few of your patients back, or give em a google voice number. you wont get as many calls as you think, and it looks nice. Peace Love Unity Respect. this was my first thread sorry if it sucks #MedTwitter
