I have immense admiration for my preceptors who are able to simultaneously truly listen to their patient, and make them FEEL listened to, while forming a diagnosis and plan in their head and typing into the chart and communicating empathetically. I hope to reach that level of skill one day!
If you're doing all that while the patient is talking, you may be listening, but you aren't hearing. You can't be, because the part of you that needs to be hearing is busy elsewhere choosing which predetermined solution will fit what you've already decided is the problem.
Doctors often don't listen to their patients however :(
I have immense admiration for my preceptors who are able to simultaneously truly listen to their patient, and make them FEEL listened to, while forming a diagnosis and plan in their head and typing into the chart and communicating empathetically. I hope to reach that level of skill one day!
If you're doing all that while the patient is talking, you may be listening, but you aren't hearing. You can't be, because the part of you that needs to be hearing is busy elsewhere choosing which predetermined solution will fit what you've already decided is the problem.