Dr Veena Shankaran Encourages Patient-Physician Communication of Care Costs

There are many cost-related pieces in the grand picture of care that are devastating to families and patients, including copayments, hospital visit bills, transportation fees, and drug prices, explained Veena Shankaran MD, MS, assistant professor in the division of medical oncology at the University of Washington.

Bringing cost into a patient’s conversation with the physician not only further engages the physician in patient care but also opens communication about future decision making for treatments and care plans, said Dr Shankaran.

“I don’t think it’s routine right now to have conversations about costs [between patients and physicians] but I think it should be,” she said.