Follow Up on Test
Results
Last week I heard
from Mary, a reader who had an experience to
share that provides a lesson for us all.
Mary’s doctor had
ordered a diagnostic for her. After the
test, she was told she would be contacted if
there were any problems.
More than a week
went by, Mary heard nothing, and assumed
everything was all right…. until….
surprise!.... Ten days later, she got a late
afternoon phone call telling her she had
been scheduled for another test early the
next morning. And oh, by the way, she
couldn’t eat anything for the 12 hours prior
to the test.
Mary didn’t know
why the test was being ordered, or what had
been found during the first test, and since
the doctor was not available, no one could
answer her questions. She had plans for
dinner that evening and no transportation to
get to the test the next day. What was Mary
supposed to do?
This is not an
unusual situation. Doctor’s offices, often
overwhelmed by patient loads or personnel
shortages, have defaulted to this "don’t
call us, we’ll call you" approach to
providing patients with test results.
For a smart
patient, that’s not good enough. You want to
get the results, good or bad, and you want
an opportunity to ask follow up questions.
Further, when possible, you want additional
appointments to be scheduled at your
convenience.
When your doctor
orders a test, ask when the results will be
available, and how they will be communicated
to you. Ask for specifics, such as "we will
call you by Thursday" or "we will mail them
within 10 days." The idea is to get a
commitment to a plan of action for
communicating what you need to know.
Then make sure
they follow through. If you don’t hear back
by the promised date, then call the doctor’s
office and ask for the results. If they
don’t have them, ask them to tell you when
they will be available. Stick with it until
the results are provided to you. And
certainly, once you know the results, if you
have follow up questions, ask who you can
talk to, and when, to get the answers you
seek.
Finally, ask that
a copy of the test results be mailed to you.
You’ll want to keep it as part of your
medical history. Regardless of the outcome,
the results may help future medical
decision-making.
© 2006 Trisha Torrey
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