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A Bad Nurse or Bad Doctor can...

Colon Cancer - Medical Care and Coping with the Mental Turmoil

Many people think they have had a bad nurse or bad doctor at sometime during their treatment. Or do you think the medical staff is talking behind your back? If yes, then you are just one of the many colon cancer patients that feel similarly.

Cancer is a scary disease and the fact that you or your loved one is afflicted with the condition can have a significant negative impact on your psychological health. Maybe you may feel that your doctor is not listening to what you have to say or a nurse is not being as helpful as you want.

Colon cancer treatments take time and require long periods of hospitalization. You naturally want the same type of behavior that you got before the diagnosis was confirmed. But you may suddenly find that things have changed after the diagnosis. People may seem less or more sympathetic, even the medical staff. There is, however, a difference between what is actually happening and what you think is going on.

Let us be very clear in this. The best cancer hospitals, no matter what the stage of the disease, will ensure good quality hospital care. The services they provide should have nothing to do with the course of the disease. But it is almost impossible to asses the situation objectively and understand whether the change is real or perceived.

Every treatment center wants you to be comfortable and confident in your care-givers. So there is staff ready to listen if you are worried about anything. Don't hesitate to tell nursing supervisors or get an administrator to listen to you if you think your physician is not caring for you properly.

Am I being unreasonable?

The question to be asked here is whether you really have a bad nurse or a bad doctor. Frankly, some medical professionals are great at some parts of their work, but not so good at others. Your doctor may be a terrific at diagnosing conditions and finding the best treatment, but not be good at personal interaction. A nurse can be great at personal interaction and following up on medical care, but may slip up at other things that bother you.

Your physician and nurse have seen many and various cases that are similar to your condition. You are facing this situation for the first time and the news of diagnosis probably creates a fair amount of turmoil for you. The medical staff knows this is scary and unfamiliar for you, and tough on your family and friends.

The medical staff sees disease, suffering and death every day of their life. While they are trained to be sensitive and empathetic, they have to look after their own psychological well-being as well. A caregiver also goes through phases of depression and sadness while taking care of a number of patients and is likely to feel low at times. Additionally, they need to try and distance themselves to some extent so as to be able to carry out their duties to the best of their capabilities without getting emotionally biased. This is exactly the same reason why many medical professionals do not treat their own relatives and loved ones.

When you see the doctor or nurse spending more time with another patient you need to understand that the other patient may need more attention than you do at that moment. Don't let your mind plays games with you at this stage. Try and be practical about the whole thing and look at the situation objectively.

While the hospital staff has duties towards their patients, remember that they come to the clinic or the hospital each day and need to lighten up sometimes by sharing a joke or two with their colleagues. In fact, spending too much time in a glum environment can take its toll on anyone. When you see them laughing or giggling, you may feel that they are 'deserting' you. Try and join in their joke and realize the fact that cracking a joke does not imply that you have a bad doctor or a bad nurse.

Unless the medical staff is really rude, there is probably no reason to worry. They are probably doing their job as normally as they do and it may just be the turmoil in your mind that is making you believe that you are not being taken care of. A person's mental state of mind plays a critical role in the extent to which a treatment takes effect.

Support

The fact that realization of cancer can have a deep psychological affect on an individual and the loves ones makes it important that friends and family provide all the support that they can at this time. Do not be afraid to accept help from your friends and family because it is sometimes this support and love that can make the difference in the way your body reacts to the treatment.

For many people support is not always available. The best cancer hospitals make sure that there is a support system available for patients. They realize that your mind can play games with you and have a strong support system that is actually a part of the treatment.

Your determination to get better is as important as the treatment. Don't let go! Treat cancer the way you would treat as any other adverse situation in life. If you do that then half the battle is already won.

Written by Steve Goldner - 4/10/09