Working with a great EM resident today, and had a great shift — right up until the end, when a consulting services with a bad attitude damn near derailed the whole thing.

My suggestions for avoiding conflict over the phone were: (1/3)

1. Empathize — The person on the other end of the phone was probably having a shite day too; Don’t tolerate verbal abuse but “I get that this is frustrating for you” helps

2. Strategize — “I recognize you disagree; Let’s build a solution that works best for our patient” (2/3)

3. Personalize — “Why don’t you meet me at the patient’s bedside and we can talk about this face to face?”

This prioritizes shared decision making, elicits a commitment form the person on the other end of the phone, and — let’s face it — it’s harder to be a dick in person (3/3)

Interstingly enough, with this strategy I have way fewer arguments than I did 5 years ago, and get way more of what I want, and what I feel the patient needs. I used to blow up, now I’m cool like the Fonz.