A Personal Communication Kit

This hasn’t been true, in my experience. I believe that the trials and triumphs of a thoughtful practice are distilled into a set of instruments that accompanies us throughout our careers. Treating the medical truth as a medicine, with doses, forms of administration, administration sequences, adjuvant words, and above all, not forgetting its therapeutic purpose is one of the best things to learn. Waiting in silence for the patient to assimilate and understand is a sign of respect and humanity that they always appreciate. Making it a goal that the patient leaves our consultation a little better than when they entered, even if we’ve given bad news, is something that we should keep in mind. Collecting anecdotes, phrases, and words that comfort, caress, soothe, and help is a part of the therapeutic arsenal that we should not despise. In this chapter, I will show which of these tools I use the most. There is no one kit better than any another, each has different strengths and weaknesses when dealing with patients. The important thing is to have your own and upgrade it with practice.