Care About Your Health Help Make the Decisions
Are you facing surgery? You are not alone. Every year, more than 15 million Americans have surgery. Most operations are not emergencies and are considered elective surgery.
This means that you have time to learn about your operation to be sure it is the best treatment for you. You also have time to work with your surgeon to make the surgery as safe as possible.
Be active in your health care to have quality care. Your regular doctor is your primary care doctor. He or she may be the doctor who suggests that you have surgery and may refer you to a surgeon.
You may also want to find another surgeon to get a second opinion, to confirm if surgery is the right treatment for you.
You might want to ask friends or coworkers for the names of surgeons they have used. This booklet gives you some questions to ask your primary care doctor and surgeon before you have surgery. It also gives the reasons for asking these questions.
The answers will help you make the best decisions. Look on page 10 in this booklet to get tips about where you can get more information on surgery.
Your doctors should welcome questions. If you do not understand the answers, ask the doctor to explain them clearly.
Bring a friend or relative along to help you talk with the doctor. Research shows that patients who are well informed about their treatment are more satisfied with their results.
