Interactions

Tempe, Ariz.

The latest Consumer Reports survey confirms what many of us have known for a long while -- one of the greatest barriers in providing adequate care is the lack of proper communication between doctors and patients.

The American Medical Student Association (AMSA) has worked to create an awareness of the need for cultural competency in doctors. Through changes in medical school curricula, outside training and collegial development programs, doctors must be better prepared to talk to their patients about everything from a headache to end-of-life issues. It is only through efforts to understand our patients as complete human beings that we can provide the care they need.

Of course our patients are often reluctant to tell us about certain symptoms or lifestyles contributing to their health. It is our job, as caregivers, to make our patients feel comfortable and to ask questions that gather the information we need, whether or not our patients volunteer it. That is the "care" in health care.

Jay D. Bhatt

President

American Medical Student Association

Reston