Doctor Can You Hear Me? By Mrs Vera West

Do doctors Care? Do they even listen? Apparently not.
  https://www.naturalnews.com/2018-07-23-study-finds-doctors-stop-listening-to-patients-after-just-11-seconds.html

“A team of researchers from the University of Florida, Gainesville, recently carried out a study that investigated the clinical encounters between physicians and patients. They assessed consultations between 112 patients and their doctors at appointments that took place between 2008 and 2015. The visits were videotaped in different clinics throughout the country. The researchers were looking out for whether doctors gave patients a chance to set the agenda for the visit – for example, by asking questions like, “What can I do for you?” or “Tell me what brings you in today.” They also noted that when patients were interrupted while speaking. Doctors let just a little over a third (36 percent) of patients set the agenda. Unfortunately, two thirds of these patients were interrupted pretty quickly – just 11 seconds after they started speaking, on average. Those who weren’t interrupted, however, finished speaking after around six seconds, so it’s reasonable to expect that they may have been interrupted as well had they continued speaking for much longer.”

     Call me an old medical cynic, but I think the days of patient-first medicine have long gone. Today it is about making money, and it is always easier to prescribe drugs that prescribe lifestyle changes. Diet, nutrition and exercise advice are generally beyond the average GP. Thus, I encourage people to become health literate and begin to develop knowledge and monitoring of their health, in coordination with a health professional, of course. Treat it just as one would your tax; you take care of the day-to-day stuff, then get expert help when you need it.