Would this bother you? re: doctors

[npmommie]

If you are at an appointment and the medical professional talks in conversation about them self does that bother you?

my friend is a podiatrist and she has another podiatrist in her practice that she has been getting complaints about. she said the patients will say he talks too much about himself while he is working on their feet and they don't want to hear it.

I would never think to complain about something like this. but I am kind of a private person and I don't like to talk about myself so if the doc was talking about himself I would not care.

It just kind of surprised me that someone would complain about this sort of thing!

he is talking about his kids etc, things like that.

assuming he got all the pertinent information about whatever reason you are visiting the practice , would it bug you if he was working on your feet and telling you about his kids?

 

[luvmy3]

No, I wouldn't care unless the conversations were inappropriate like him/her talking about what they were doing in the bedroom last night.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

I don't think it would bother me. It's better than nothing. My podiatrist and I talk football. So at least I'm involved in the conversation that way.

 

[ncmickeyluvr]

It wouldn't bother me if he/she was just making small talk and mentioning things about themselves. I think that actually helps to make them more "human" and develop a relationship with their patient. I think that has been increasingly absent.

I did, however, stop taking my ds to an allergy/asthma specialist because he would constantly talk about his grandaughter. He would start out EVERY appointment with asking ds what grade he was in at school, then proceed to mention that he had a grandaughter that same age. Then, throughout the appointment, he would quiz ds on math problems and such. If ds stumbled ....which he inevitably would because he's quite good at math but shy around strange adults...the Dr. would declare that his grandaughter could solve that problem without hesitation!!! We'de then have to hear about how his little snowflake went to a fancy private school and was recieving a superior education. Yah.... fantastic for her.......

 

[Mkrop]

My GYN talks Disney and DVC the whole appt...for which I am quite grateful for...makes the appt go much quicker!




No I would not care, hairdressers do this too.

 

[luvmarypoppins]

I wish any of my doctors would say something, any small talk is good. They are all like a bunch of robots. I am thinking maybe that is the hospital policy etc.

Only my one surgeon who also operated on my ds talks if he is even in a good mood. I think this is only because he almost killed me during the surgery and was thinking we would sue him etc. He told us about his sick sister in law, the wedding he was going to. That was about it and made 2 jokes.

 

[mdsoccermom]

My gynecologist tells me about trips he's been on. Though last appointment he told me about a gadget he bought to convert his family videos to DVD.

I don't mind it at all.

 

[Wishing on a star]

If there are complaints, then yes, I would highly suspect that this doctor spends a bit too much time in personal conversation, focusing on themselves.

There is a big difference in, for example... 'Yep, we've got a nice Disney vacation coming up this summer...' and getting more personal... personal opinions, beliefs, likes/dislikes, viewpoints, etc...

I would have no problem with a bit of personal interaction...
But, yes, I have seen doctors who are a bit too self-absorbed and condescending, etc....

There is a line somewhere in the middle there...

 

[Wishing on a star]

He told us about his sick sister in law, the wedding he was going to. That was about it and made 2 jokes.

This, IMHO, would be crossing that line... personal illnesses, family situations (unless one does happen to be a family friend)...
and even the jokes.... Unless they were very, VERY, innocuous... jokes can definitely express very pointed viewpoints.

 

[kamik86]

I like when doctors talk... takes my mind off why I'm there and how much I HATE going to the doctors.

The dental assistants when I was a kid would talk to me about school and what was going on and a bit about their kids classes and stuff.

Now one of my doctors even writes notes of things to ask about next time in our file. So she asked about the wedding and such after I got married etc. Talked about my new job when I got one.

 

[nmmom95]

I see a lot of doctors on a regular basis, and I enjoy conversations that keep my mind off why I'm there. My nephrologist is the best! We talk about our kids, she loves Disney as much as I do, so we talk about vacations. It makes the visit go by quickly.

 

[happygirl]

No I don't mind that at all, I think that is good bedside manner, makes them seem more approcable

 

[Pea-n-Me]

In general, no. I enjoy a two way conversation with (thinking) yup, just about all of my doctors, dentists, NPs, hygeinists, etc. It's kind of funny because our conversations usually pick up where we left off last time, lol.

We did have one dentist, though, who used to stuff things in your mouth and then run off his political views. He did it in such a way, though, it amused us (maybe it helped we agreed politically). I'm sure many weren't too happy, though.

As a caregiver myself, I try to be sensitive to patients who may not want to talk and to be careful about what we talk about. I mean, if someone's been sick in the hospital for weeks I'm not going to gush about the fun I'll be having this weekend, etc. People like to talk about themselves and their families so you have to be a good listener, too.

 

[dreamin_disney]

unless I was in a lot of pain and he kept going on and on and on. I wouldnt be able to focus if i was in pain the talking would frusturate me.


once i paid for a massage and the darn man kept talking and talking . It was the worst massage ever cuz i couldnt relax. I should have said something but i didnt $50 down the drain. I usually got the female and I loved her she didnt talk but I was so annoyed that I never went back

 

[tlbwriter]

In general, no. I enjoy a two way conversation with (thinking) yup, just about all of my doctors, dentists, NPs, hygeinists, etc. It's kind of funny because our conversations usually pick up where we left off last time, lol.

We did have one dentist, though, who used to stuff things in your mouth and then run off his political views. He did it in such a way, though, it amused us (maybe it helped we agreed politically). I'm sure many weren't too happy, though.

As a caregiver myself, I try to be sensitive to patients who may not want to talk and to be careful about what we talk about. I mean, if someone's been sick in the hospital for weeks I'm not going to gush about the fun I'll be having this weekend, etc. People like to talk about themselves and their families so you have to be a good listener, too.

Yeah, it wouldn't bother me unless it was something like this. But if he's getting complaints from multiple patients, he must be crossing some kind of line, don't you think?

 

[mtemm]

the only time one of my dr's conversations ever bothered me was when I had my first son. I had an unexpected c-section and was really nervous...I was worried something was wrong with my son (he wasn't doing well during labor, which is why things ended up in the OR), I was nervous about the operation, etc. Anyway, son came out fine, so I was just breathing a sigh of relief while my ob was stitching me up. then she started talking to the nurse who was assisting about how it wasn't coming out well at all, how there was a problem with the stitches, how she didn't like the look of things, etc, etc. I was laying there starting to freak out when I finally piped up and asked her what was wrong. turned out she was talking about an embroidery project!

It was really funny after the fact, but I really was worried there for a few minutes!!!!

 

[tlbwriter]

the only time one of my dr's conversations ever bothered me was when I had my first son. I had an unexpected c-section and was really nervous...I was worried something was wrong with my son (he wasn't doing well during labor, which is why things ended up in the OR), I was nervous about the operation, etc. Anyway, son came out fine, so I was just breathing a sigh of relief while my ob was stitching me up. then she started talking to the nurse who was assisting about how it wasn't coming out well at all, how there was a problem with the stitches, how she didn't like the look of things, etc, etc. I was laying there starting to freak out when I finally piped up and asked her what was wrong. turned out she was talking about an embroidery project!

It was really funny after the fact, but I really was worried there for a few minutes!!!!

 

[Limetree]

I'd be talking about myself too if I had to look at and smell stinky feet all day.

No it would not bother me.

 

[miralys]

Polite small talk, fine. Talk about personal matters, no. Talk that takes up the whole visit (which is never long to begin with), no.

Honestly, I'm there to talk about my health. If you start getting too personal, I am likely to forget what I came in there for (which is why I have a list, and then I get looked at like I am crazy).

 

[FredinFL]

I had a vet like that, really buddy I don't care how much money you made or your newest golf score, thanks. Just bleed me dry and let me out the door.