Faustinella is an internist. "I can't tell my patients the truth any longer because they get upset, as if I were insulting them." This is what a colleague of mine said after his 85-year-old patient, whom I will call Kathy*, expressed dissatisfaction with the office visit.
Attributing her knee pain to degenerative joint disease and explaining that this is a common occurrence "later in life" was apparently perceived as a slight. The x-ray report, clearly documenting the changes of arthritis, was not enough to satisfy Kathy who, reportedly, could not understand why her symptoms or condition should be attributed "just to old age." She was tired of hearing that so many of her ailments were part of the aging process.
I'm not foreign to this type of interaction, where patients seem to reject that physical and cognitive decline are expected with aging. Perhaps they are just in profound denial regarding the effects of age. Although the aging process differs significantly from person to person, it seems disingenuous that our patients could believe that age will have little to no effect on their functional abilities.
"No one wants to admit they're old," my colleague concluded. So, what's the best way to communicate with older adults about their age-related health conditions? Reconciling a History of Ageism With an Aging Population Society and nature are not kind toward elderly people. Ageism is a reality.
Suffice to mention the recent dispute ignited by President Joe Biden's performance.