Recipients of the 2019 Cullman Family Award for Excellence in Physician Communication celebrated at a reception on Tuesday, October 15. Nineteen of the 51 awardees have received this honor more than once. Some of the multiple winners explain why they believe their patients recognize them as excellent communicators.
Judith Hoffman, MD, Instructor, Department of Pediatrics, Mount Sinai Doctors
“I am a naturally social and curious person and generally want to know about the backgrounds of the families of my patients. As you get to know more about each family, you have a deeper understanding of who they are and how they may respond to challenges with their children or other family members. When I get to know them better, I think they feel more cared for. I try to make eye contact with everyone in the room throughout the visit—not just focusing on the primary caretaker—to make everyone feel they are part of the care of the child we are discussing. I also make a huge effort to speak in nontechnical language.”
Marla Stern, MD, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, The Mount Sinai Hospital
“Making my patients and their families feel special is important to me. I listen very carefully, and I never rush. I don’t underestimate a parent’s concerns. If they are serious to the parent, I treat them as such. I always summarize key takeaways of a visit and verbalize and write down prescribed medications, with dosing instructions and potential side effects. I encourage questions and underscore that I am always available if questions arise—as they inevitably do—after the visit.”
Sidney S. Braman, MD, Professor of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
“Each year at the international meeting of CHEST, the American College of Chest Physicians, I recite and recommit myself to a pledge of patient-focused care: “Patient-focused care is compassionate, sensitive to the everyday and special needs of patients and their families, and based upon the best available evidence.” This commitment of physicians has been present for centuries. The 12th-century Sephardic Jewish physician and philosopher Maimonides pronounced, ‘The physician should not treat the disease but the patient who is suffering from it.’ He also famously said, ‘Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.’ Offering patients advice gives them satisfaction for that day. Teaching them about their condition—what is going wrong with their body, how to cope with the condition now and into the future—can offer them comfort for a lifetime.”
Kelly Cassano, DO, Chief, Ambulatory Care, Mount Sinai Beth Israel, Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs
“I am fortunate to have long-standing relationships with many of my patients. The ability to connect with them has been built over time, which allows for a trusting rapport and ease to our communication.”
Koji Park, MD, Assistant Professor, Surgery, Mount Sinai West, Mount Sinai St. Luke’s
“While surgeons are sometimes stereotyped as being paternalistic and lacking empathy, we have a unique culture in our department that is perhaps unusually humanistic. It takes a little extra time to make sure patients feel they are heard, supported, informed, and empowered. Surgery is such a serious business, it’s the least we can do.”
David Dunkin, MD, Assistant Professor, Pediatric Gastroenterology and Hepatology, The Mindich Child Health and Development Institute
“I pride myself on sitting with the patient and their family members, speaking in clear language, and providing both written and spoken instructions that I review twice. Above all, I believe that my patients and their parents know that I care and that we will help their child feel better together.”
Marsha Gordon, MD, Professor and Vice Chair, Kimberly and Eric J. Waldman Department of Dermatology, The Mount Sinai Hospital
“I try to follow the Golden Rule. It sounds clichéd, but it’s true. Do to others as you would like done to you. That means anticipating their concerns, alleviating their anxieties, seeing them as a whole person and not just a patient, and being available for their questions. I am honest with them. I let them know when I am unsure and when I think we need to bring in another expert. I listen. I care about them; I worry about them—and they feel it.”
Alfin Vicencio, MD, Chief, Division of Pediatric Pulmonology, Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs and Strategy, Department of Pediatrics
“I feel that I may have an unfair advantage as a pediatric pulmonologist. I get to ‘play’ with my patients in the context of a visit. Simply asking about a recent birthday party or allowing a child to demonstrate a new fist bump can go a long way in developing a connection. I try to make an appointment seem less like an appointment, even turning routine breathing tests into a game. I do not trivialize concerns expressed by a parent. If a symptom is worrisome to a parent, but is not overly so to me and my team, we do our best to explain why, rather than saying, ‘Don’t worry about that.’”
Lori Garjian, MD, Assistant Professor, Rehabilitation and Human Performance, The Mount Sinai Hospital
“I try to allocate enough time with my patients, not only to obtain a detailed medical history but also to find out a bit about their personal lives and work demands. It is important to get to know each patient as a unique individual in order to formulate the best treatment plan together.”