Ask patients “What matters to you?” rather than “What’s the
matter?”
by Sosena Kebede, MD 21287, USA skebede3@jhmi.edu
BMJ 2016; 354
This can help reframe interactions in a more patient-centered way:
Maureen Bisognano, one of the keynote speakers at this year’s International Forum on Quality and Safety in Healthcare in Gothenburg, Sweden, told delegates that we should ask our patients, “What matters to you?” rather than, “What is the matter?”
The question “What matters to you?” tries to get to the essence of patient- centered care, which the Institute of Medicine has listed as one of the priorities for quality improvement.
