I have touched on this subject in the past, but from a different perspective.
I'm not an oncologist, but I just play one at work. Over the past 4+ years of my treatment "tenure" - I have listened carefully to what the doctors, nurses and pharmacists have said about me and my drugs. What they are giving, why they are giving it, when and how long the administration timeframe will last, potential side-effects or interactions . . . all that stuff. That probably seems obvious, and sort of is, but what I have noticed is that it helps for me to sometimes be the constant across this variety of prescriptions - a backstop of sorts. Permit me to clarify.
By choice, I have managed to schedule the overwhelming majority of my ongoing regular treatment sessions for Saturday mornings. Though the care that I receive is uncompromised, and the Saturday staff are equally-trained professionals, they are folks who are putting in extra hours on weekends - to help out the weekday crew and help out their own pocketbooks. Again - this is NOT an indictment of their abilities or attention, but rather it does create a slight gap in their familiarity with the doctor's orders. Though Dr S is ALWAYS a quick text away to verify any questions (and has consummated that availability many times - to make sure there are no misunderstandings with my regimen), I am the one who is at every treatment and is carrying forward what was done the most recent time or two prior.
The "weekend" staff understands this dynamic and is happy to have me act as a member of the team. I will occasionally say, "Last time we did such and such - is there a change this week?" Non-threatening and not pretending to know more than them, just sharing the past cocktail blend to help them quickly get up-to-speed on today's orders and their connection to the past. This practice doesn't offend them nor does it shake my confidence one iota, scintilla or smidgen. It's all part of the process of checks and balances that are critical to making sure, bottom-line, that I get the right drugs in the right amounts at the right time. Which is all that the entire team wants (me included).
So when I see a change or discrepancy in my meds from the last visit, and I haven't been told of that change by Dr S (who tells me every move he is making and what's going into me), I respectfully advocate for myself. No feelings are hurt - and no patient is harmed (ie: me). As my old buddy Hippocrates said, "First do no harm."
