The following tips for talking to health professionals may be helpful.
- Tell the people managing your care how much you want to be involved with decisions about your treatment.
- Ask as many questions as you need to, and don’t worry about asking the same question more than once.
- Write down questions when they occur to you so you can remember them when you meet with members of your healthcare team.
- Ask a relative or friend to come to your appointments and ask them to write down what the doctor or nurse says.
- If your doctor agrees, tape record your discussions so you and your family can listen again later.
- Ask your doctor or nurse to write down what was said during your appointments.