Relationship Between Medical Team – Patient – Family

​“I don’t like asking the doctor questions because I feel like they’re always in a rush.” “They explain things using terms I don’t understand.” “I felt really good because they took the time to explain it to me.” “If I didn’t understand what they said, my child definitely didn’t.” “I feel embarrassed to talk to the doctor.”

Because they work in a human-centered context, the medical team must be genuinely interested in establishing and maintaining a deep, supportive, and empathetic interpersonal relationship with the patient and their family. At COINCIDIR, we support healthcare professionals in reviewing and developing their psychological skills to strengthen their connection with patients and prevent or address professional burnout.

“How do I generally react to stressful situations? In what ways do I respond similarly with patients? How do I react to another person’s pain?”

We guide professionals in reflecting on their daily experiences with illness and death:

1. The emotional vulnerability they face, including feelings of frustration, sadness, guilt, anxiety, depression, helplessness, anger, uncertainty, fear, and powerlessness.

   
   

2. The phenomenon of projection, where the patient becomes a mirror of the professional’s own emotions and reactions.

   
   

3. Themes such as identity, belonging, and problem-solving.

   
   

4. Acceptance of limitations related to therapeutic obstinacy (the unjustified prolongation of diagnostic or therapeutic practices that do not benefit the patient in terms of healing or quality of life).

   
   

5. Professional commitment, ethical competence, and compassion to prevent mistrust and isolation.

   
   

6. Communication of information (cause, symptoms, treatment, process, prognosis) with attention to the environment, use of simple language, and respect for the patient’s decision to know or not know their condition in order to prevent the anxiety such information may cause in the short, medium, or long term.

   
   

7. Use of empathetic phrases: “I understand this isn’t easy for you,” “I know this is new for you, you’ll understand more over time,” “We can talk about this again,” “Write down your questions and bring them to the next appointment.” Information may need to be repeated, as denial can make it difficult to process or may distort it, but the time invested helps prevent misunderstandings.

   
   

8. Consideration for the patient by improving assertive communication.

   
   

9. Integration of the medical team by enhancing verbal and non-verbal communication among its members.

   
   

10. Recognition of burnout symptoms (chronic fatigue, intolerance toward patients and colleagues, disinterest in work, stress, irritability, or depression) and risk factors (environmental, organizational, institutional, group and personal).