{"id":43706,"date":"2017-01-11T09:48:40","date_gmt":"2017-01-11T14:48:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/?p=43706"},"modified":"2017-01-11T16:15:33","modified_gmt":"2017-01-11T21:15:33","slug":"listening-to-patients-is-key-to-a-good-patient-physician-partnership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2017\/01\/11\/listening-to-patients-is-key-to-a-good-patient-physician-partnership\/","title":{"rendered":"Listening to patients is key to a good patient-physician partnership"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Karen<\/a>

Karen Kirkham, right, of Wright State Physicians Geriatrics, with patients Nancy and Glenn Knauff.<\/p><\/div>\n

When Nancy Knauff, 81, and her husband Glenn Knauff, 83, made appointments with Karen Kirkham, M.D., of Wright State Physicians Geriatrics, they didn\u2019t know what to expect. They had been happy with their previous physician, but that physician left the practice.<\/p>\n

They were concerned about starting over with another doctor. But when Kirkham walked through the door and greeted them as though she had known them for a long time, the Knauffs knew that they had made the right decision in choosing her to be their physician. Kirkham listened, looked directly at them and discussed their concerns with them. When the appointment ended, Nancy Knauff gave Kirkham a hug.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe is probably one of the only doctors that I\u2019ve ever given a hug,\u201d she said. \u201cShe made me feel at ease right away. She listened to my concerns and answered all of my questions. She was very attentive to anything I asked.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her husband echoed her sentiments. \u201cDr. Kirkham was in no hurry,\u201d he said. \u201cShe listened to me, asked questions and answered my questions.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Kirkham, listening to patients is key to a good patient-physician partnership. She asks what is bothering, worrying or concerning them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI get to know the patient,\u201d said Kirkham, who is an associate professor of internal medicine at the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine<\/a> and a 1989 graduate of the medical school. \u201cWhen I talk to my geriatric patients, each of them has a lovely story. I really like my patients. It\u2019s a privilege to treat them.\u201d<\/p>\n

She enjoys geriatrics because she can spend more than 15 minutes with a patient. By doing so, she can better understand the needs of each individual patient. For some patients, she is only a geriatric consultant. For others, she is their primary care physician. Either way, she determines what resources she can bring to each patient and how she can best help manage his or her health.<\/p>\n

Kirkham is able to understand her patients because she can identify with them. \u201cI\u2019m a local person. My family is from Springfield,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is like treating my relatives and neighbors.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Knauffs are looking forward to seeing Kirkham for their regular checkups. They are confident that she will work with them to meet their health care needs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would highly recommend her to anyone,\u201d Nancy Knauff said. \u201cI just think she is marvelous. I\u2019ve seen a lot of doctors in my 81 years. She\u2019s very special.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wright State Physicians Inc.<\/a> is composed of more than 180 physicians affiliated with the Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine. The group provides primary and specialty care in a wide range of specialized diagnostic and treatment services throughout the Dayton region.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Karen Kirkham works with her patients at Wright State Physicians Geriatrics. She understands the needs of each individual patient and how she can best help. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":50,"featured_media":43709,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[722,711,725,2016,715,2134],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43706","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-faculty-staff","category-home-news-sidebar","category-medicine","category-news","category-wright-state-physicians"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43706","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/50"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43706"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43706\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43724,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43706\/revisions\/43724"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43709"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43706"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43706"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43706"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}