A Few Extra Minutes Can Save Time, Prevent Mistakes

Almost everyone is in a hurry.

And I get it, because I, too, am usually in a rush. But sometimes I have to remind myself that rushing not only doesn’t save time (well, okay, maybe a minute or two—sometimes), but it can make more work down the line.

Here’s why I’m thinking about this—and nurses should take note, because you are often the purveyors-of-information and patients depend on you to communicate that information in an understandable way.

My daughter-the-runner had leg pain for several weeks and finally went to the orthopedist. Young guy. Very smart—but in a rush. After her X-ray was done and in his hands (or maybe it was on the laptop he carried around), he told her a bunch of things in a hurry.

After the appointment, she called us to say that he had talked so quickly and was looking at the computer so much of the time, that she really didn’t understand what the diagnosis was or what she was supposed to do next. Was she supposed to avoid weight-bearing for six weeks—or was it 12? Did she really need the MRI he wanted, because without health insurance, she would have to pay cash. And if she got the MRI, would the treatment be any different than if she didn’t?

This meant another call to the doctor the next day, plus several calls from the office staff to my daughter trying to set up an appointment for the MRI, which she wasn’t sure she was going to have. And there were the calls to me and my husband, who had to make further calls to the orthopedist’s office yadda, yadda, yadda…

All of this despite her parents’ connections to the local medical community.

With a little less hurry and three or four more minutes of explanation to my daughter (probable diagnosis: stress fracture), all of the fallout of this botched appointment might have been avoided.

Makes me wonder how many times people with no connections and complicated health problems —like the elderly, disabled and chronically ill—are left wondering what’s going on with their health and health care.

Spending a few more minutes on attention, careful instruction and/or listening—on the part of a physician or nurse—can mean less frustration and fewer mistakes, and at the end of the day, may leave health care professionals with a little extra time.

Do you feel the pressures of time with your job?

Do you think anything can be done to change that?

Do you have any time-saving tips?

Tell us what you think.