Questão 4 - UEG Medicina 2025/2

Leia o texto a seguir para responder à questão.

 

Why do doctors have bad handwriting?

 

Ever get a note from a doctor and not been able to read it? It’s an old joke that doctors, despite their incredible education and a job that requires critical attention to detail, just can’t seem to make their handwriting readable to the rest of us. But is the stereotype true?

 

Is it true that all doctors have bad handwriting?

This myth is so widespread that researchers actually looked into this claim. When comparing a group of health care professionals, including hospital executives, clinicians and managers, researchers didn’t find that doctors’ writing was any better or worse than others in the group. (The participants were given 10 seconds to write the sentence “Quality improvement is the best thing since sliced bread.”) A second, larger study also concluded that doctors’ handwriting is no worse (or better) than that of professionals in other fields.

 

What could make health care workers’ handwriting difficult to read?]

Health care settings are incredibly fast-paced, technical environments with few desks or writing stations. Doctors, nurses and other health care professionals are often writing detailed notes, as quickly as they can, using technical jargon, on whatever surface is available to them to write on. Patients also may be unfamiliar with the medical jargon or shorthand health care professionals use to communicate. All of these factors together can make their writing challenging to read.

 

Should I be worried if I can’t read my doctor’s handwriting?

Whether written on a piece of paper or emailed, it is important that patients understand what their health status is and the pros and cons of available treatment options. The solution? Talk about it with your doctor! Always best to ask about something you’re unsure about.

If you’re worried, it’s also perfectly acceptable to take your own handwritten notes during an appointment.

 

Let’s talk solutions

Clear and accurate communication is the bedrock of effective health care. Thankfully, the growing use of electronic health records — where notes, forms, prescriptions and treatment plans are typed out and stored electronically — are replacing the handwritten note. These systems also ensure everyone on a patient’s care team is using clear, widely accepted medical terms. And if something still isn’t clear, responses are just a phone call or email away.

Fonte: https://www.cma.ca/healthcare-for-real/why-do-doctors-have-bad-handwriting. Acesso em: 7 fev. 2025.

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