S13: Episode 137: Dr. Dan Dorevitch- Pediatrics and communication skills

And I think I've heard you talk about this, but like what are the things that, you know, kids are worried about? Like what is on their mind? What are their biggest fears when it comes to thinking or confronting dying and death?

I think we think we make the mistake often of thinking that they are thinking like adults would about death and dying.

And in some ways they do, but in other ways they have very childlike fears around death and dying.

There was a beautiful study that was done out of Perth in Australia from the Lion Heart Count for Kids organisation where they had a sort of like an ask me anything session with anonymous questions written and put into a box, which they then looked at later.

And these were admittedly all children who had experienced bereavement.

They were bereaved children.

But you learn a lot from that around what kinds of questions children are asking and what are their fears.

And it's not always what you think.

I had a colleague and a mentor who was working with a child once who was terrified that if they died, no one would return their library books.

I've had, I worked with a child earlier this year who was worried about their Lego collection and what would happen to that after they died.

So adult fears around pain, legacy, and how will I be remembered? Sometimes children have those kind of fears, but also they have beautiful childlike fears that we need to make sure we give space to.

to open up to because they're just as pressing to them as adult fears are to adults about dying.

And what have you learned that of how communication is different between children and I guess their families between those two and I guess the adult palliative care world too, because you've had some experiences there too.

Yeah, that's true.

You mentioned I'm in Cairns.

Actually, I'm in Brisbane now.

Last year in Cairns, I was working for the year with the adult palliative care population up there.

That's in far north Queensland, whereas this year I'm working at Queensland Children's Hospital in paediatric palliative care.

I think the answer...

In my view, nothing is different.

Ultimately, for every person you interact with as a doctor, as a clinician, as a human, you're tailoring your communication to the experience, to the developmental stage, to the language proficiency of the person who you're interacting with.

And so that is a continuum.

It's a spectrum.

And it's your tailoring of that communication should be no different if you're working with a two-year-old compared to an eight-year-old compared to an 18-year-old compared to a 28-year-old compared to an 88-year-old.

Like you need to look at them, understand who they are as a person as best you can and communicate with them in a tailored way.

And I think I've heard you talk about this, but like what are the things that, you know, kids are worried about? Like what is on their mind? What are their biggest fears when it comes to thinking or confronting dying and death?

I think we think we make the mistake often of thinking that they are thinking like adults would about death and dying.

And in some ways they do, but in other ways they have very childlike fears around death and dying.

There was a beautiful study that was done out of Perth in Australia from the Lion Heart Count for Kids organisation where they had a sort of like an ask me anything session with anonymous questions written and put into a box, which they then looked at later.

And these were admittedly all children who had experienced bereavement.

They were bereaved children.

But you learn a lot from that around what kinds of questions children are asking and what are their fears.

And it's not always what you think.

I had a colleague and a mentor who was working with a child once who was terrified that if they died, no one would return their library books.

I've had, I worked with a child earlier this year who was worried about their Lego collection and what would happen to that after they died.

So adult fears around pain, legacy, and how will I be remembered? Sometimes children have those kind of fears, but also they have beautiful childlike fears that we need to make sure we give space to.

to open up to because they're just as pressing to them as adult fears are to adults about dying.

And what have you learned that of how communication is different between children and I guess their families between those two and I guess the adult palliative care world too, because you've had some experiences there too.

Yeah, that's true.

You mentioned I'm in Cairns.

Actually, I'm in Brisbane now.

Last year in Cairns, I was working for the year with the adult palliative care population up there.

That's in far north Queensland, whereas this year I'm working at Queensland Children's Hospital in paediatric palliative care.

I think the answer...

In my view, nothing is different.

Ultimately, for every person you interact with as a doctor, as a clinician, as a human, you're tailoring your communication to the experience, to the developmental stage, to the language proficiency of the person who you're interacting with.

And so that is a continuum.

It's a spectrum.

And it's your tailoring of that communication should be no different if you're working with a two-year-old compared to an eight-year-old compared to an 18-year-old compared to a 28-year-old compared to an 88-year-old.

Like you need to look at them, understand who they are as a person as best you can and communicate with them in a tailored way.