Making your appointment count

Have you been to the Physio or other health care practitioner and walked away without sufficient understanding of your problem. As health professionals it is our responsibility to provide you with certain information, and as a patient you should be proactive in seeking information about your condition. These are some questions you may ask your Physio or healthcare provider.

1. What is the diagnosis? Sometimes it is possible to provide a clear diagnosis and sometimes it is not. However you need to know the most likely diagnosis and also other possibilities or differential diagnoses.
2. How significant is the problem. What likely impact both short and long term is this likely to have on your life.
3. What is its likely prognosis or progression or outcome? How long will it take to recover? Is there a likelihood of recurrence?
4. What are the suggested treatment options and what are the risks and benefits of the suggested treatment?
5. Are there any alternative treatments available or further investigations required to prove the diagnosis?
6. What costs will be involved, how many visits will you require?
7. Can you have some written information about the problem? It is hard to remember technical information about your problem, don’t rely on your memory, either take notes or ask for a writing explanation and treatment plan.

A final tip – be proactive about your injury, the website is a great source for general reading and although it you should not diagnose yourself or choose your own treatments, the more you understand about your body, the more you will get out of a session with your Physio.