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Bedside manner left me fuming
Letter from Michael Ng
05:55 AM Oct 20, 2009
I AM writing about some unpleasant treatment I received at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) last Tuesday.
In May this year, I had a serious accident and suffered a concussion, for which I was sent to SGH. Since then, I have suffered from frequent headaches, which I seldom had before the accident. I contacted SGH to ask for a CT scan and a follow-up appointment.
I went for the CT scan on Sept 30 and was given an appointment to see a neurosurgeon, Dr C (name withheld), at the hospital's outpatient specialist clinics.
When I entered the room, I greeted Dr C with a "Good morning". I received no reply nor any acknowledgment of my presence. The nurse then beckoned me to sit down. Thereafter, as far as I could tell, Dr C merely fiddled with his mouse and took a cursory look at my CT scan results, all the while saying nothing to me.
Eventually, Dr C turned around and said: "Wah, so long ago ... should not have a problem what." I kept quiet. He then said: "You've got headaches right? Headaches are very normal, not necessary due to your injury what ... " in what I felt was a very dismissive tone, suggesting that I was wasting his time.
I told him that it is not normal for me to have headaches almost every day and that I certainly did not have them before the accident. Also, from what I had read, headaches suffered post-concussion can persist for months, or even up to a year or more.
In the course of the consultation, Dr C said fewer than 50 words to me. I was made to feel like a malingerer, that I was imposing on him and wasting his time.
I am a paying customer. I expect a professional like Dr C to exhibit basic manners to me. I do not expect him to be friendly but at least behave professionally. I certainly did not expect Dr C to make me feel worse than I already did.
I am so disgusted with the treatment I received that I have made up my mind not to visit SGH again, even though I have a follow-up visit scheduled in a couple of weeks.
The SGH should educate its doctors not only on their core competencies - medical skills - but also on their EQ and soft skills.
Letter from Michael Ng
05:55 AM Oct 20, 2009
I AM writing about some unpleasant treatment I received at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) last Tuesday.
In May this year, I had a serious accident and suffered a concussion, for which I was sent to SGH. Since then, I have suffered from frequent headaches, which I seldom had before the accident. I contacted SGH to ask for a CT scan and a follow-up appointment.
I went for the CT scan on Sept 30 and was given an appointment to see a neurosurgeon, Dr C (name withheld), at the hospital's outpatient specialist clinics.
When I entered the room, I greeted Dr C with a "Good morning". I received no reply nor any acknowledgment of my presence. The nurse then beckoned me to sit down. Thereafter, as far as I could tell, Dr C merely fiddled with his mouse and took a cursory look at my CT scan results, all the while saying nothing to me.
Eventually, Dr C turned around and said: "Wah, so long ago ... should not have a problem what." I kept quiet. He then said: "You've got headaches right? Headaches are very normal, not necessary due to your injury what ... " in what I felt was a very dismissive tone, suggesting that I was wasting his time.
I told him that it is not normal for me to have headaches almost every day and that I certainly did not have them before the accident. Also, from what I had read, headaches suffered post-concussion can persist for months, or even up to a year or more.
In the course of the consultation, Dr C said fewer than 50 words to me. I was made to feel like a malingerer, that I was imposing on him and wasting his time.
I am a paying customer. I expect a professional like Dr C to exhibit basic manners to me. I do not expect him to be friendly but at least behave professionally. I certainly did not expect Dr C to make me feel worse than I already did.
I am so disgusted with the treatment I received that I have made up my mind not to visit SGH again, even though I have a follow-up visit scheduled in a couple of weeks.
The SGH should educate its doctors not only on their core competencies - medical skills - but also on their EQ and soft skills.
