What happens if you have to bring a family member to the doctor?

 A recent meta-analysis on this subject [Social Science & Medicine; 2011;doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.01.015] found that accompanied patients were significantly older and more likely to be female, less educated, and in worse physical and mental health than unaccompanied patients. The heterogeneity of studies reviewed made broad conclusions difficult, but one result stands out in terms of physician behaviour. Physicians were found to provide more biomedical information to patients when a companion was present, and results suggest that they were also less apt to engage in social conversation. The studies reviewed did not systematically address patient outcomes, but there was no evidence to suggest that accompanied patient outcomes were inferior. However, outcomes were consistently favourable among accompanied patients when family companions were more verbally active suggesting that wasn’t not simply the presence of family companions, but the roles they assume that have a bearing for patient outcomes.