Changing How We Think about Difficult Patients

Physicians enter their professions with the highest of hopes and ideals for compassionate and efficient patient care. Along the way, however, recurring problems arise in their interactions with some patients that lead physicians to label them as "difficult." Some studies indicate that physicians identify 15% or more of their patients as "difficult." The negative feelings that physicians have toward these patients may lead to frustration, cynicism, and burnout. Changing How We Think about Difficu