A few years back, the doctor performing mom’s operation realized that mom did not stop her blood thinner medication. The doctor was angry with her. Blood thinners had the potential to make mom bleed out during surgery which is obviously a safety issue. However, this concerned me because:
- Mom is hard of hearing, but there was no attempt to write down necessary instructions for surgery.
- There was no avenue for myself or any family member to contact the doctor about the meeting prior to surgery.
This was a flaw in the communication workflow and the patient was blamed. When a user is blamed, especially the vulnerable, it can be scary and there is no possibility for improvement.
When you are in the Automagic mindset, there is a 180 degree shift in thinking. Workflows are no longer perfect, but instead they are flexible and can be improved. Users show the flaws and the enhancements — not the other way around.
We have several PSWs coming to the house to help dad out. There are those in the minority who are not very patient and the experience ends up being frustrating. However, there are PSWs who listen to my dad on how he wants to move which is important because dad has a fused hip. He can’t sit up and has different strategies for getting up. Because the PSWs listen to him, they let him guide them to the workflow. They essentially use the Automagic mindset and the experience is simply delightful.