Creating Holistic Environment

 A positive outcome of any treatment is only possible if the patient has confidence in the doctor who is treating him. It is a common observation of many doctors that though two doctors have given the same medicine of the same dosage to two difficult patients or in some instances to the same patient there was a significant difference in the level of improvement the patients Clinical study conducted implies that if a patient has faith and belief in the doctor, he would show significant improvement to the same medicine to which he had not responded positively earlier when prescribed by another doctor. Even before you actually see your patient and examine him there are two factors which have a great deal of impact on the patient's mind. Firstly, the opinion of the patient whom you have treated earlier and secondly, the environment of our waiting room. For successful healing every doctor should pay some attention to these two factors While treating your patients make efforts in strengthening the doctor-patient relationship which is discussed in the Chapter II. One point which I would like to emphasize about the Doctor Patient relationship is that it's not only the particular patient with whom you have good relation will take benefit from you, but he is also going to talk about you to many of his friends and relatives. And, thus, in this way you will continue to get the returns of your efforts for a long time. It's very much possible that your treatment does not give some patients complete relief. Yet those patients certainly have a good opinion about you. This is possible if you have explained the nature of the disease to those patients and also the possible outcome of the treatment. Hence, do give complete assurance to the patients and at the same time explain that only few patients do not recover completely.

Secondly, the environment of your waiting room is also important. Cleanliness, good vibrations and health promoting colors on the walls of your waiting room are useful. Make such arrangements so that sounds from your consultation room are not heard outside specially if you are a dentist or orthopedic surgeon. Many times the shouts and screams from patients undergoing treatment are frightening to patients waiting outside specially to the children. Children tend to think that the very fact that they have been taken to the doctor means there is something terribly wrong with them. Parents have unknowingly planted in a child's mind the idea that medical treatments are painful. For eg a mischievous child may have been told that if he misbehaved they would take him to the doctor who would give him an injection. If you take care of this environmental factors you become successful in implanting the first positive healing touch on a patient's mind Doctors need to pay attention to their dress and physical appearance. You must have heard the example of a professor who advised the students to take care of their shoes because if patients observe shabby shoes of the doctor they tend to think that when he does not possess the ability to take care of his own shoes certainly he does not possess the skill of taking care of his patients. If things are properly arranged in your clinic and on your table you are able to win the confidence of your patients.

Credit: Brahma kumaris