Around 140,000 diagnostic errors occur in Australia annually and communication is a major contributing factor for them. Misdiagnosis is often worse for women who can feel unheard or dismissed in the clinical setting.

The Lost in Diagnosis: Navigating the Communication Challenge of Misdiagnosis in Women event on Thursday 7 September, 5.30pm at The Street Theatre brings together patients, doctors and health communication experts for an interactive discussion on the challenges women face when seeking diagnosis. It also highlights the importance of communication in diagnosis.

Dr Mary Dahm, an Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) Fellow and Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Communication in Health Care (ICH) at The Australian National University, is a part of the event’s diverse panel and has a keen interest in examining the role and impact of communication during diagnosis.

“There are many longstanding biases still prevalent and many of them are related to communication around diagnostic processes. There is often a misalignment between doctors and patients, especially for women,” Dr Dahm says.

“The panel at the Lost in Diagnosis: Navigating the Communication Challenge of Misdiagnosis in Women event will discuss critical issues which includes the biggest challenges women face while seeking diagnosis and the possible steps that can be taken to overcome those issues.”

The panel discussion will be moderated by Dr Amy Coopes (Canberra-based doctor, writer and editor at Croakey Health Media). Panel members are Darlene Cox (Executive Director of Health Care Consumers Association Inc.), Jen Morris (Patient Safety Advocate), Dr Marisa Magiros (General Practitioner and medical educator, Royal Australian College of General Practitioners), Dr Arnagretta Hunter (cardiologist and Human Futures Fellow, ANU College of Health and Medicine) and Dr Mary Dahm.

The event is a part of the Wellspring Series which is a collaboration between the Street Theatre and the ANU School of Literature, Languages and Linguistics (SLLL).

Register for the free event here.

You can share your thoughts and potential question to the panel in this short survey.