A WINSFORD GP is urging residents to alter their perceptions about going to the doctor, amid pressure on front-line medical services.

In a blog post, Dr Jonathan Griffiths of Swanlow Surgery has outlined the basics of a GP appointment from behind the desk, educating patients on what doctors are looking for and how best to help them help you.

Key advice includes understanding that doctors are looking to assess your condition rather than necessarily treat it, and also that the way you describe your symptoms is generally more helpful than any examination.

Dr Griffiths, who is also chairman of the NHS Vale Royal Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), wrote in his blog: “You’ve been going to the doctor all your life. You know how this works, right? Wrong.

“You need to change your approach to going to the GP.

“There is more to general practice medicine than meets the eye. Understanding how your GP is approaching their consultation with you can help you adjust your approach with them.

“Being on the same page as your GP can only help this process and get you the help you need when you need it.”

The headlines of Dr Griffiths’ tips are five-fold.

  • Doctors are looking to assess rather than treat, and that patients should be looking to come out of their appointment with an expert opinion rather than all the answers.
  • Doctors will learn more from the story you give than the examination they perform. Rather than saying ‘I’ve got a sore throat’, open with more details.

Dr Griffiths said: “Get as much out as you can in that first minute or so, fully explaining your symptoms as well as your own ideas or concerns about what’s going on.”

  • You should be ‘very clear why you have attended to see the doctor, and do that at the start of the consultation’ – i.e. that you want to rule out tonsillitis or throat cancer, or simply that you want a sick note as this will alter how the consultation is handled.
  • The advice also urges patience from patients, who should not always expect an accurate diagnosis on a first visit.

Dr Griffiths said: “Very often your GP will use time as a tool to aid diagnosis.

“This might mean that you don’t get a definite diagnosis on your first visit, but when you come back (not better), then this will trigger further tests. This does not mean that you should have had the tests the first visit.”

  • Similarly, patients should not see coming away without a prescription as a wasted trip.

“Why would you want to take a drug that you didn’t actually need,” Dr Griffiths asks in his final blog tip.

“Do not be fooled by the better safe than sorry mentality. There is risk associated with every course of action.”

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