Having a good relationship with your health care provider will help you feel more confident with your care. It also leads to better care and outcomes.
The core of this relationship is good communication. You and your doctor must be able to easily share information, questions, and concerns.
There are many steps you and your doctor can take to help make sure you understand what your doctor is thinking and planning.
Tell your providers about any:
Do this even if your provider does not ask about it.
Remember, you know more about your symptoms and health history than anyone else. Your providers will depend on you to fill in the gaps. You are helping both yourself and your providers when you let them know about a symptom or problem.
When you see your provider, bring the following:
Make sure that you understand all the information and advice from your providers.
Both your surgeon and the hospital likely perform many knee replacements every year. But for you, having this surgery is an important event. So you deserve to have all of your questions answered.
Before you see your doctor, think about your symptoms, problems, or questions. Write them down.
Here are some tips for when you see your providers:
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