Help for Patients and Families

When Dr. Frank encounters a patient in a crisis from anywhere in the world, he is well aware that helping the patient’s loved ones (in addition to the patient) through thoughtful communication is an important part of his role. And he does this uniquely well, knowing that it requires time, patience, listening, and educating. Once people engage Dr. Frank, he is available 24-7 to assist from anywhere in the world for specific crises that require this level of attention. 

For mental health crises, Dr. Frank administers evidence-based tools to help patients in close collaboration with the patient’s mental health professionals. What distinguishes Dr. Frank is that he is a careful listener, collaborative, empathic, and understands that helping patients does not simply involve adding a “magic bullet treatment. Rather, it requires careful listening and developing a multi-dimensional plan to achieve the best outcome.

Sometimes families are told that the patient in an extreme neurological crisis has a poor prognosis that justifies allowing the patient to die. This can be very hard to confidently accept perhaps due to the:

• the suddenness of the situation
• severe acuity of the problem
• demeanor and/or approach of the treating healthcare professionals

Families/loved ones often need the comfort achieved by taking an extra step of engaging a truly experienced professional who will be rapidly available to:

• listen to the concerns
• thoroughly review the medical information
• provide thoughtful guidance to supplement the treating team’s approach

In some case, the care approach is inadequate or there are other treatment alternatives to consider. Dr. Frank and his team will attempt to respectfully guide the care perspective of the treating physicians or facilitate safely transferring the patient to the care of other professionals.

Peace of Mind

Upon engaging Dr. Frank, you will immediately have a specialist fully committed to helping you understand the clinical situation and, with international neurological crises, guiding the local medical care team toward the most appropriate care decisions. It is never easy to have a loved one dealing with a neurological crisis. The most important step you can take is to be sure that the care is appropriate and that the information you are being provided is coherent. While Dr. Frank cannot make every patient better, his involvement will give you the peace of mind that a real expert is:

• listening to your concerns
• thoroughly reviewing the relevant clinical details
• truly committed to helping your loved one and you

Advocacy

When patients are in an extreme neurological crisis, they often need more than a neurological consultation:

• The patient may require a transfer to another institution nearby or far away.
• The local medical team may need a leader to facilitate communication between specialists or challenge certain clinical decisions.
• The patient’s loved ones may need assistance in planning for recovery – where it should happen and what should be provided to optimize the outcome.
• If the neurological crisis was caused by an avoidable medical error, someone will need to speak up and address accountability for the error.

When you engage Dr. Frank for urgent consultations, you can depend on the fact that he will be fully invested as an advocate in all realms of care. He has the extensive experience that allows him to anticipate what will be required. Dr. Frank is often able to accomplish even some of the most challenging tasks.

Are you in need of an urgent consultation, click here to schedule your appointment. Urgent consultations within 1 week are often not covered by insurance – except in certain circumstances.