YOUR ROLE: WHAT YOU CAN DO TO GET MORE OUT OF YOUR CARE AND YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR DOCTOR (EDUCATING YOURSELF – PART 2)
Support and education groups often give free reading materials on diseases; these are loaded with issues of importance to you, the consumer of health care. Talk to others who have similar problems, and learn the specifics of what works for them so you can discuss it with your doctor intelligently.
If you're going to bring information to your doctor about your particular health problem, make sure it's as complete as possible. For example, don't tell your doctor that you want to know more about "that article in the Washington Post on a new treatment for infertility." You cannot expect that your doctor reads everything you read, or watches every program you watch. Bring the article with you, or write down the relevant details: the name of the drug or procedure, the names of the hospitals or physicians quoted as using the technique, and so on. Often, health information in the lay media is based on a study or report from another source, such as a medical journal or health conference. If you can provide your doctor with this information as well, you'll help him/her locate more information on the subject.
A generic drug is made with the same active ingredients and is available in thesame strength and dosage form as the equivalent brand-name product. Generic drugs produce the same effects in the body as the brand-name drugs, because both contain the identical active ingredients...
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