Have a conversation with your patient to get a basic sense of their overall health.

One evening, I went to an Urgent Care center because I had taken a bad fall and I was concerned by the amount of swelling and bruising of my hip. My kids helped me follow the receptionist into an exam room. She didn't look at me long enough to notice that I had difficulty walking, and no medical history was asked for. The kids helped me onto the exam table and we waited for the doctor to come in.

The doctor came in, talked to me for two seconds, and then asked if I had hit my head when I fell. After 9 months in the hospital and recently learning to walk again, this struck the kids' funny bones and they began to giggle uncontrollably. The doctor said that I had a hem-a-to-ma(a bruise), over-enunciating every syllable, in a very condescending tone. He then said that he wanted to see my gait, to check if I was injured. The kids were practically on the floor laughing by this point, so the doctor asked them to leave.

After telling me I had a bruise, he left me alone in the exam room. He had kicked out my helpers, so I made my way back myself, touching the walls as needed. This doctor obviously lacked empathy.