Assignment: The Importance of Physician-Patient Communication

Patient and physician communication is the key to prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. For many patients, talking to a physician can be an intimidating process. Effective communication can be reduced by the limited time that patients often have to express their health concerns with their health provider.

Explain how miscommunication in physician-patient interaction might impact recovery of a patient. Justify your answer.

According to you, which are the two most critical examples of miscommunication between physicians and female patients according to Sue Fisher (1984)? What are Eric Cassell's (1985) criteria for effective communication? Justify your answers with appropriate research and reasoning.

Cassell, E.J. (1985). Talking with patients, Vol. 2. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Fisher, S. (1984). Doctor-patient communication: A social and micro-political

Performance. Sociology of Health and Illness, 6, 1-27.

Managed Care

Managed care is designed to help control health care costs. It regulates the costs of health care by capping the costs of certain procedures.

Docs in a box are clinics that can rapidly see patients for lower costs.

What do you understand by the term "managed care"? What is the influence of managed care in regulating the medical profession?