A family medicine resident has advised patients to use the acronym OPQRST to describe their pain during GP appointments, as many struggle to articulate symptoms. Dr Javier Martinez, who posts on social media as @Dr.kenji_martinez, shared the technique in a video to help patients communicate more accurately.
The acronym breaks down into six questions: O for onset (when did the pain start?), P for provoking factors (what makes it better or worse?), Q for quality (is it sharp, burning, or pressure?), R for region (where is it and does it travel?), S for severity (on a scale of zero to ten), and T for timing (is it constant or intermittent?). Dr Martinez said this method enables doctors to help faster and more precisely.
The video received positive feedback from viewers, including a patient who shared it with their oncologist and a healthcare worker who found it useful for triage. Many thanked the doctor for the clear guidance.
