Being health-aware has never been more important than it is right now. In the last year plus, we’ve all become more aware than we probably ever wanted to be on a number of fronts, but incomplete knowledge is, in its way, more dangerous than no knowledge at all. The truth is that health and medicine are vastly complicated fields that require a lot of thought - and below, I’m going to run through some facts that are important to bear in mind whenever public health is being discussed.

Doctors don’t know everything, and they’d never claim to

A lot of resentment is thrown at doctors by people who presume that clinicians are under the impression they are somehow infallible or all-knowing. They’re neither, and that’s an important point, because sometimes you’ll ask your doctor a question and they’ll need to find out more before answering you. If you’re unwell, it can take multiple appointments to even diagnose you - and that’s because human health is extremely complex with few easy answers.

Every bit of information is important, so don’t hide any facts

When speaking to your doctor about an issue, you may be asked questions you’re not comfortable answering - but they’re not asking to be nosy*. You may tell your doctor you drink less than you actually do, or that you don’t smoke when you do, but it’s important not to do this. Those few facts could be crucial in a differential diagnosis - and your doctor has heard worse, so be honest.

*There may be, obviously, some exceptions to this - if a doctor’s questioning seems irrelevant, it’s okay to challenge the question.

Don’t dodge an appointment - contact matters

Time is of the essence in health matters. Every doctor-patient contact is an opportunity to find something out that could help you, and even save your life. A basic general dentistry appointment can flag up warning signs for cancer, heart disease, diabetes and other issues. If you have a check-up scheduled, don’t miss it because you feel fine - it’s better to know the facts than assume anything.

You shouldn’t try to self-diagnose, but informing yourself is essential

You’ve probably heard the warnings about “Dr. Google”, and with good reason. Googling your symptoms is a dangerous thing to do, as it is all too easy to take some relatively benign symptoms and discover that they can be a sign of something serious. For example, a pain in the chest is one of the symptoms that some people experience when they are having a heart attack - but it is also a symptom of countless other things, including indigestion or GERD.

With that said, it is beneficial to know as much as possible about health issues and how to describe your symptoms. If you are experiencing pain, for example, it will help a doctor if you can say how long the pain has been occurring, what type of pain it is (stabbing, throbbing, dull), when it occurs and what seems to work in reducing it. Much of a doctor’s work is involved in interpreting a patient’s self-reported symptoms, and the easier you make that the sooner an accurate diagnosis can be made.

Make sure that you are communicating everything to your doctor, such as if you have any preferences when it comes to treatment. For example, some people don’t like to take medication, and some people just don’t like handling it for fear they might take too much by accident. Your doctor may be able to offer you blister pack pharmacy solutions to this where your medication is dosed out for you, but the important thing is that you are communicating with them about your health and your needs.

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