Five Patient Habits That Frustrate Doctors — and Can Harm Your Health
Physicians say self-diagnosing, delaying care, withholding information and interrupting treatment impede accurate diagnosis and effective care.
Primary care physicians and internists say five common patient behaviors routinely undermine clinical care and can put patients at increased risk: insisting on a self-diagnosis, postponing visits, not disclosing alcohol or tobacco use, raising major concerns only at the end of an appointment, and stopping prescribed medication without consulting a clinician.
A strong doctor-patient relationship improves outcomes, doctors say, but it depends on open, timely and accurate information. “It’s so important to have a good doctor-patient relationship because the more your doctor knows you and your health, the better your care can be,” said Dr. Zachary Bittinger, a clinical assistant professor of family and community medicine at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus. “But healthy relationships have boundaries. Making sure that you understand your doctor’s boundaries and your doctor understands yours is a core piece of it.”
Physicians say the most common friction begins when patients arrive convinced they already know what is wrong. Many people use online tools or artificial intelligence to interpret symptoms before seeking care, and while clinicians expect patients to do research, they caution against presenting a firm diagnosis without a full clinical evaluation. “Many people use Google or ChatGPT to diagnose themselves, which can lead to the wrong diagnosis,” said Dr. Michael Aziz, an internist at Northwell Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. He noted that symptoms that seem similar — like strep throat and flu, or a stiff neck from a muscle strain versus meningitis — require different evaluations and tests.
Physicians train to create a differential diagnosis by taking a sequence of information from history, exam and testing, said Dr. Andrea Manyon, chair of the department of family medicine at the University at Buffalo. When patients assert a specific diagnosis up front, it can bias how the visit unfolds and how both patient and clinician weigh subsequent information. Dr. David Cutler, a family medicine physician at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, said implicit bias can lead patients to give undue weight to confirming details and dismiss information that contradicts their preconception.
Delaying care is another recurrent problem. Doctors say some patients wait too long to be seen for new or persistent symptoms, which can allow conditions to worsen and reduce treatment options. “Many people wait too long before being seen,” Aziz said. Bittinger added that timely evaluation can also ease anxiety; patients who postpone visits sometimes suffer unnecessary worry about serious conditions that may ultimately have a benign cause.
Honesty about things that affect diagnosis and treatment is essential, physicians said. Manyon singled out cigarette and alcohol use as examples of “confounding variables” that clinicians must know to make appropriate recommendations. She emphasized that clinicians should not be judgmental but need accurate information to decide which tests to order and what treatments to recommend.
Timing of complaints within an appointment also matters for efficient, effective care. Dr. Janet O’Mahony, a primary care physician at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, said it is frustrating when a patient raises a major concern as the encounter is ending. She urges patients to state their most important one or two issues at the start of a visit so the clinician can prioritize. O’Mahony also reminded patients that diagnosis sometimes requires serial assessment: a clinician may order tests or ask for a return visit to track whether symptoms are improving or worsening.
A related and potentially hazardous behavior is stopping medication without contacting the prescribing clinician. O’Mahony described patients who do not return for scheduled follow-ups because “the medicine they gave me did not work” yet never informed the physician. Stopping treatment abruptly can cause symptom recurrence, withdrawal effects or other complications and removes critical information that might guide alternative therapy.
Physicians interviewed for this report said they understand why patients turn to online sources, delay care or feel reluctant to share sensitive information. They recommended clear steps that preserve the therapeutic relationship and support accurate diagnosis: be open to clinical expertise after doing personal research, seek evaluation promptly for new or persistent symptoms, disclose alcohol and tobacco use and other health-related behaviors, bring priority concerns to the start of the visit, and maintain communication about how treatments are working before making changes on your own.
Immediate care and clear follow-up are often essential to ensure the “right questions are asked and the right tests are performed for an accurate diagnosis,” Aziz said. Doctors said that when patients provide complete and timely information and follow through on recommended testing and visits, diagnostic accuracy and treatment effectiveness improve. Conversely, the five habits clinicians flagged can delay correct diagnosis, reduce treatment options and in some cases place patients at direct risk.
The practitioners’ guidance underscores that patient behavior is a critical part of clinical care. Open, timely and honest communication, and willingness to engage with follow-up recommendations, strengthen the ability of clinicians to deliver appropriate and effective care.