"I read once that most newspapers are written at a 5th-grade level so that most people can understand the message. I think that today we are inundated with verbal messages and written messages, so what we choose to say should be prime real estate. That means no filler or fluff words for me, and to speak in a way that the patient or family can understand. As a resident of your program, I fully understand that I will be relied upon to educate patients and fellow residents down the road and I'm very excited to do this. If faced with a time that I had to explain something medically complicated, I would take a simplistic and step-by-step approach with the person. I would stop along the way to ensure they can repeat what I'm teaching them and use language and terms that best suit their educational level."
