Health min. recommends recording conversations with doctors

Health Minister Edith Schippers recommends that patients record conversations with their doctors. According to her, listening to the recorded conversation at home can help a patient put his thoughts in order an make a decision. "For proper care it is crucial that doctor and patient agree on following a treatment, a decision they must make together", Schippers wrote in a letter to the Tweede Kamer, lower house of parliament, on Thursday. "It is important that the patient can also ask questions, that the doctor gives room for that and takes the time to answer those questions." According tot he minister, patients often forget large parts of the information their doctor gives them, especially if they just heard bad news. It is therefore a good idea for patients to record the conversation. She adds that there are rules attached to this. For example, the recording is only for personal use and patients should tell the doctor that he or she is being recorded. While this last is not required by law, it does make for smoother doctor-patient relationships.