Admitted to hospital with severe Covid-19, a 57-year-old woman who lied about her vaccination status unfortunately died. A fake vaccination certificate “may falsely direct the doctor who takes care of you”, commented at the microphone of France Info Pr. Djillali Annane, head of the intensive care unit at the Garches hospital where this patient had been admitted. And for good reason: if the patient had recognized from the start that she was not vaccinated against Covid-19, the healthcare team could have “early administer neutralizing antibodies, which are known to be effective in reducing the risk of disease progression”.
It’s not always easy to reveal your problems in front of an interlocutor whom we do not know. But when this is your doctor, it becomes essential to be honest during your discussion. However, it is clear that lies, even the smallest, are commonplace. The American Medical Journal JAMA Network revealed -following a survey conducted in 2018- that nearly 80% of people surveyed had lied at least once to their doctor, or had intentionally withheld information potentially important to their health.
The most common reasons for lying to your doctor
Also according to this same study, several reasons commonly come up to explain this behavior. Some of the reasons mentioned are directly linked to the relationship that the patient has with his own pathology: the patient fears being judged, he does not want to recognize the extent to which his habits are detrimental to his health, he finds it difficult to assume what he is going through, or, finally, he does not think that this information can have any consequence on his care medical. It also happens that a person does not want to appear as a difficult patient in the eyes of his doctor, or even fears to waste his time.
But some lies also come fromlack of trust in caregivers : a patient is sometimes certain that his doctor cannot help him, another may have had a bad previous experience with a health professional. Finally, in some cases, a patient may fear that personal information will be disclosed to someone in their family.
The risks of poor disclosures
The first, and most obvious, is that you are misdiagnosed. You will therefore not be properly followed for your true pathology.
The second risk, which stems directly from the first, is that the treatment you are given may ultimately be harmful to your health. Indeed, faced with ineffective medication, the doctor may want to prescribe larger doses: then you risk an overdose.
Either way, you can develop significant side effects.
If, despite these arguments, you still experience resistance, don’t forget that your doctor is obliged to medical secrecy. He is a trusted interlocutor, and your exchanges will remain confidential. So the next time you see your doctor, be yourself and share all your worries with him in confidence.
Sources:
- Prevalence of and Factors Associated With Patient Nondisclosure of Medically Relevant Information to Clinicians, JAMA11/30/08.
- handles
