{"id":335,"date":"2019-05-11T06:38:30","date_gmt":"2019-05-11T06:38:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/magazine.diabetesasia.org\/?p=335"},"modified":"2025-04-17T10:37:05","modified_gmt":"2025-04-17T05:07:05","slug":"are-you-captain-of-your-health-care-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/are-you-captain-of-your-health-care-team\/","title":{"rendered":"Are you captain of your health care team ?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Your health care providers don\u2019t do things to you (or your children), they do them with you. As captain of the team and the main player in the day-to-day management, you must come to a visit prepared, ask questions, and persist until your questions are answered.<\/p>\n

\"Are<\/p>\n

CHECK GLUCOSE LEVEL<\/strong><\/span> REGULARLY AND \u00a0INFORM YOUR DOCTOR<\/h2>\n

Before your office visit, share blood glucose<\/a><\/span><\/strong> results and highlight any results that cause you concern or seem unexplained. This provides the doctor with information to review in advance and bring a copy of the information you sent with you in case it was not received or got misplaced. Review your blood sugar log before your visit, looking specifically for any patterns or things that may have caused unusual highs or lows.<\/p>\n

PREPARE THE QUESTION YOU HAVE TO ASK YOUR DOCTOR<\/h2>\n

Write down questions and concerns before your appointment. Keep your list short \u2013 two or three issues are probably all that can be addressed in most visits due to time constraints \u2013 and make sure to discuss the most important things first.<\/p>\n

TAKE PROPER GUIDELINES FROM THE DOCTOR<\/h2>\n

You should feel comfortable sharing any worries. If you feel that you can\u2019t comfortably talk to your doctor, it may be time to find another provider that you can confide in. Take notes!! Be sure you know what the doctor said and that you understand. If not, ask questions.<\/p>\n

TAKE FULL INFORMATION ABOUT DRUG CHANGE OR NEW DRUG<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

If you have information about new drugs<\/a> <\/strong><\/span>or products, share this information with your physician. It could be a learning experience for them, too.<\/p>\n

DISCUSS ANY PHYSICAL CHANGE OR NEW SYMPTOM WITH THE PHYSICIAN<\/h2>\n

Be honest about what you or your child is or is not doing. This includes compliance, eating, monitoring, or other issues. Describe barriers that tend to get in the way of controlling diabetes.<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\u2022 Discuss any physical changes or new symptoms.<\/p>\n

PARTICIPATE IN DECISION SHARING<\/h2>\n

Engage in \u201cshared decision-making\u201d with your doctor. This means actively participating. The day-to-day management is up to you, and you need to understand the various options and express your preferences regarding the best treatment plan for you and your family.<\/p>\n

TAKING APPOINTMENT BEFORE \u00a0IS BENEFICIAL<\/h2>\n

Discuss how to obtain help outside the scheduled appointments. Ask what may qualify as an emergency and at what point you would need to contact him\/her. See if sharing blood glucose levels with the office regularly is beneficial.<\/p>\n

\"TAKING<\/p>\n

CALL THE PHYSICIAN AFTER OFFICE VISIT HOURS<\/h2>\n

Since physicians are often pressed for time, you may wish to arrange a phone call after office hours to explore issues further. Doctors often make calls from the office after they have finished with patients.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople with diabetes need a couple of families \u2013 the one that they are born with, the one they create, and their medical team. It is the medical team that can keep you, your family, and each other from burning out. No one has to carry the burden of care alone, and everyone on the team should be interested in doing their professional best for you.\u201d
\nYou are the captain of the team. Your health care providers don\u2019t do things to you (or your children), they do them with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although you have to put it into action, developing a plan that works for you is a cooperative effort.\u00a0 You should be active and self-confidently involved during and in between office visits.\u00a0 Communication is the key.\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0What does this mean?<\/p>\n

\"CALL<\/p>\n

\u2022 Before your office visit, share blood glucose results and highlight any results that cause you concern or seem unexplained. This provides the doctor with information to review in advance.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Bring a copy of the information you sent with you in case it was not received or got misplaced.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Review your blood sugar log before your visit, looking specifically for any patterns or things that may have caused unusual highs or lows.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Write down questions and concerns before your appointment. Keep your list short \u2013 two or three issues are probably all that can be addressed in most visits due to time constraints \u2013 and make sure to discuss the most important things first.<\/p>\n

\u2022 You should feel comfortable sharing any worries. If you feel that you can\u2019t comfortably talk to your doctor, it may be time to find another provider that you can confide in.<\/p>\n

\u2022 If you have information about new drugs or products, share this information with your physician. It could be a learning experience for them, too<\/p>\n

\u2022 Be honest about what you or your child is or is not doing. This includes compliance, eating, monitoring, or other issues. Describe barriers that tend to get in the way of controlling diabetes.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Discuss any physical changes or new symptoms.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Engage in \u201cshared decision-making\u201d with your doctor. This means actively participating. The day-to-day management is up to you, and you need to understand the various options and express your preferences regarding the best treatment plan for you and your family.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Discuss how to obtain help outside the scheduled appointments. Ask what may qualify as an emergency and at what point you would need to contact him\/her. See if sharing blood glucose<\/a><\/span><\/strong> levels with the office on a regular basis is beneficial.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Take notes!! Be sure you know what the doctor said and that you understand. If not, ask questions.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Since physicians are often pressed for time, you may wish to arrange a phone call after office hours to explore issues further. Doctors often make calls from the office after they have finished with patients.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Establish a good relationship with members of the office staff. This helps communication. They often have significant knowledge and can ask questions directly to the doctor in between office visits.<\/p>\n

Remember, as captain of the team and the main player in the day-to-day management, you must come to a visit prepared, ask questions, and persist until your questions are answered.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Your health care providers don\u2019t do things to you (or your children), they do them…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":9108,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-335","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle-medicine"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/group-happy-doctors-medical-team-600w-2464277447.webp?fit=600%2C286&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/335","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=335"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/335\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9108"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=335"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=335"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diabetesasia.org\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=335"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}