A Career Attending to, and Teaching About, the Patient-Doctor Relationship

Dr. Michelle Kittleson and Dr. Adam Cifu get real about the patient-doctor relationship, especially when the stakes are high and the answers are not simple. She shares a small move that can ease a patient’s anxiety in seconds: showing you came prepared, with their story already in your hands. They talk through shared decision making, why patients should steer, and why clinicians still need to give a clear recommendation. They also spend time on the toughest pivot of all: when cure is off the table, what do you say next, and what can you still do to reduce suffering?

What is The Clinical Excellence Podcast?

The Clinical Excellent Podcast, sponsored by the Bucksbaum Institute for Clinical Excellence is a biweekly podcast hosted by Drs. Adam Cifu and Matthew Sorrentino. The podcast has three formats: discussions between doctors and patients, discussions with authors of research pertinent to improving clinical care and the doctor-patient relationship and discussions with physicians about challenges in the doctor-patient relationship or in the life of a physician.