The luck of the draw
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We joined the consultation halfway through, with a female patient, Mrs Wilson, discussing the small cleaning tasks she does in the morning. The patient then listed many concerns and questions while the doctor, visibly frustrated by what he perceived as wasted time, struggled to maintain his professional demeanour. The issues raised were not strictly medical, and it seemed like the patient had arrived to engage in casual conversation.
Mrs Wilson, the patient, mentioned, “And when I finish, I can hardly move! The pain in my back is unbearable.” She described how she can barely move her back when she finishes work or tries to attend to her kids without experiencing pain. Additionally, Mrs Wilson mentioned that her kids are “screaming and yelling all the time” and expressed that they are not much help. She mentions that one or the other is generally ill with a cold or has something wrong with them. “I had the other one up at the hospital last week. Ten stitches he had to have in his head.” She tells the doctor. Mrs Wilson suspects the doctor had received a letter informing him of that situation, which was true.
Never at home, always up the boozer.
In addition, she discusses her husband, stating, “The old man doesn’t want to know.” He’s only concerned about his cough: “Cough, cough, cough.” The patient attributes it to his smoking habit and declares that he won’t quit even though it’s slowly killing him. Mrs Wilson says he’s never around and is “always up the boozer.” Now, she’s curious about what he’s doing there and is visibly frustrated by his reckless behaviour, a clear sign of her need for more patient-centered care.
While all this is happening, we can see the doctor looking on, frustrated by the situation. Eventually, the doctor pulls out a small, wooden round box and opens it to reveal a pair of dice. We later find out these dice are part of the doctor’s system to determine the pills, dosage, and frequency of his current patient’s next visit. At the same time, the patient, Mrs Wilson, is talking about the veins in her legs and her pain, and the doctor says, “I want you to take these pills,” as he throws the dice. The first roll results in a Five; the doctor writes this in his notebook. He then rolls again and gets an Eight. “Eight times a day,” he says as he writes it down. Lastly, he rolls the dice again to determine when his patient will see him next, and it lands on an Eight. The dice landing on an Eight meant he would see her in eight weeks.
See me again!
Finally, the doctor removed the sheet after finishing writing. He handed Mrs Wilson a prescription and said, “Please make another appointment.” Despite this, she continued talking about her leg. Mrs Wilson looked mildly surprised but very pleased and said, “It’s nice to be able to talk to you and have someone listen to me!” before leaving. The patient received the prescription and left the appointment feeling content, underscoring the importance of patient satisfaction in healthcare.
In conclusion, this recording emphasises the communication gap between doctors and patients and the arbitrary nature of their treatment recommendations. This clip illustrates the challenges doctors face. Sometimes, patients may want to talk but don’t necessarily have a medical reason to be there. The doctor hastily prescribes medication and moves the patient to expedite the process. However, this hasty prescribing behaviour can lead to severe consequences, such as overdosing. Therefore, doctors should refrain from prescribing medication so quickly without a valid reason.