Olga Lucia Torres, JD, MS

After surviving a brain injury I made a discovery—to make the most out of doctor-patient interaction, both the doctor and patient have to show up as professionals. I’m not suggesting that the patient and the doctor are equals in knowledge or skills. No, an egalitarian relationship at the medical level is not possible. In large part, the doctor dictates the treatment, and the patient is expected to comply. But could not this compliance be re-calibrated?

In this talk and or workshop, I explain how the best results come when the doctors and patients think and work in sync, when they share concerns and expectations. Professional patient isn’t about the frequency of appointments or the nature of the patient’s ailments, but rather the state of mind of the patient during their doctor’s visits.

After completing my master's in narrative medicine and working as a patient advocate, I found there are 4 basic steps that patients can take that will help them have a more professional attitude when they see their doctors, and this professional attitude, will greatly enhance the quality of their interaction with the clinician. In this talk or workshop, I go over the steps (I’ve created an easy to remember acronym for the steps) and how to implement them."