Doctors warned words like pain or vomit can affect patients symptoms

PAIN specialists and anaesthetists are warned to stop using certain words unless the patient uses them first. Find out which ones they shoudn’t say.

The Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists annual conference will tomorrow hear about the dangers of predicting a patients’ response to treatment.

SIMPLY mentioning words such as hurt, sting, itch and worry can be enough to make patients feel pain or magnify their symptoms during conversations with doctors.

With the power of suggestion able to distress already anxious patients near the time of surgery, Australia’s pain specialists and anaesthetists are being put on notice to stop using words that can have a negative impact unless the patient uses them first.

Other words on the unmentionable list for doctors include pain, vomit and panic.

Dr Allan Cyna from Adelaide’s Women’s and Children’s Hospital will address the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists’ annual conference tomorrow on the dangers of predicting a patients’ response to treatment.

Doctors have been warned that their use of words like pain or hurt could affect patients symptoms.

Rather than trying to predict what a patient will feel from a procedure and forewarning them, Dr Cyna said providing straight information about why something was being done can lessen their negativity.

“People use this language with the best of intentions without realising they are inadvertently unhelpful,” Dr Cyna said.

“The idea behind this is not to not say things, it is to say them in a therapeutic way, rather than an unhelpful way.

“The classic examples are ‘there is nothing to worry about’ — if somebody who is perfectly calm is being told there is nothing to worry about subconsciously you are implying there is something to worry about.

“Or ‘would you like to kiss you child goodbye’, obviously that is a subconscious suggestion and often their parent will cry.”

Doctors words could affect the symptoms of patients.

Dr Cyna said the traditional view was that doctors needed to warn patients what may happen, however it was now being realised they may actually encourage negative reactions.

In previous Adelaide trials of patients having a drip inserted, those who were told it may ‘sting’ were more likely to voice their pain and become restless.

Another US study showed that changing the phrase ‘there is a big bee sting coming’ when injecting anaesthetic was replaced with ‘we’re numbing the skin’ the pain scores were significantly decreased.

Dr Cyna has helped develop a clinical communication strategy to help anaesthetists build patient rapport and lessen their anxiety.

* The reporter attended the ANZCA gathering in Brisbane as a guest of the College.

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