Communicating With Doctors Can be Hard; We Can Help You With That

Now more than ever, the importance and role of family caregivers is growing. According to a survey done by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services in 2009, Wisconsin alone has over 600,000 caregivers. With Wisconsin’s population aging, this number will only grow in the future.
One of the major roles that caregivers play is keeping communication lines open between healthcare professionals, like doctors, nurses, or pharmacists, and the friend or family member they are helping. This role is critical because healthcare professionals also depend on the caregivers to relay messages and make sure proper care is given.
In fact, in Green County this challenge was rated number one by caregivers in a survey done in 2012. To address this problem, the UW School of Medicine, the Aging & Disability Resource Center, and other local agencies have partnered to support family members who help seniors with health care. The project is called Care Talks.
Care Talks is a set of four educational workshops designed to help support family members or friends who assist a senior with health care or doctor appointments. This project specifically offers:
• Assistance on navigating the health care maze when all doors seemed closed.
• How to be prepared, communicate with the doctor, and follow up after an office visit.
• A primary care physician’s point-of-view of an ideal visit as shared by a local physician who will field questions and comments.
• Strategies on dealing with disagreements effectively – between family members or with physicians.
• Problem-solving opportunities as a group to tackle the many challenges that may come up and tips from those in the same situation.
Paul D. Smith, MD, the Principle Investigator for Care Talks, is a Professor in the UW-Department of Family Medicine and has been a family physician for 35 years. Dr. Smith continues to do patient care one day per week and spends the rest of his time with a variety of service and research activities. He has served as a volunteer on the Board of Directors for Wisconsin Literacy for 11 years and also played a role in his mother’s health care as a long-distance caregiver.
“Understanding health information and navigating our complex healthcare system are challenges for everyone,” says Dr. Smith. “This program helps caregivers build on their current skills so they can be more effective expressing their concerns and getting the answers they need from their healthcare team.”
The Care Talks project first started in Green County as a pilot study in 2014. One of the past participants says, “I used to just walk in [to a visit] and try to remember everything I wanted to discuss, but would always forget something. I feel much more confident about being prepared and that reduces my stress a lot.” Another shared, “I learned I am not alone with these problems. I don’t feel alone after hearing other people’s ideas and solutions.”
In fact, 100% of past participants would recommend this program to a friend.
The four-part Care Talks series will be offered in Monroe on April 3rd, 10th and 17th, at the Monroe Public Library. If you help a senior with doctor appointments or medications and are interested in discussing this project please call the Aging & Disability Resource Center at (608) 328-9499.