You’ve been told to speak with someone on your healthcare team after a problem in care occurs… but how do you talk about it? What should you bring to the discussion?

Below are a few tips to help you feel prepared when speaking to your healthcare team.

It’s important for your healthcare team to know about what has happened to you, the ways in which it harmed you, and the kind of help you need. They may not know how you are suffering until you tell them.
You may find that it is easier to talk with some people on your healthcare team. Trust your feelings. Try to talk with people that listen to you, respect what you are saying, and take steps to care for you.
Sometimes you may find it easier to talk with your healthcare team when someone else you trust is there too. Even if they cannot be there in person, you may be able to call and put them on speaker or video.
If you feel like you don’t have enough time to talk with your healthcare team, try telling them this and asking them to find more time to talk with you.
Try writing down what you want to say (and document any questions you may have) so that it’s easier to remember and stay on track when you are talking.

Here Are Some Ideas:

Plan to talk about what happened to you, what you feel went wrong in your care, and the ways in which you have been harmed. You might try writing down a timeline: what happened, when it happened, and who was there.
You can also share how you felt about your care, the effect it has had on you and your loved ones, and how your experience may change the way you interact with the organization, healthcare, and its people in the future.
You may find it works best if you start with a short (1-2 sentence) summary of what happened and how you were harmed—so that the person has a sense of what you’ll be talking about—and then share more details.
List your questions, the problems you’re having, and the kind of help you want.
You may want to understand what happened and why, and what changes will be made so that the same thing doesn’t happen to someone else. But there may be other things that you need—be sure to ask in case there are ways the organization can help you.
Ask for the contact information of the person you are in touch with (name, direct phone number, email address) and ask when you can expect to hear from them again.
Ask how long it will take for them to look at what happened in your care and how they will share that information with you.

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