While much of the work Dr. Namita Joseph does treating patients with advanced or end-stage heart failure involves highly technical medical and device therapies, it is the empathy gained from seeing her own family members struggle with life-changing illnesses that enables her to be a guiding light for patients.
“I’ve experienced the same fear and uncertainty, and work very hard to mitigate concerns about their diagnosis, the trajectory of the disease, affording medications, and whether they can return to work,” said Dr. Joseph. “Part of my approach is to establish trust that helps redirect that energy.”
The connections she is able to build make having hard conversations about the reality of a patient’s situation, which most often involve the need for mechanical heart pumps and the likelihood of transplant, a little easier. “It’s important to convey the seriousness of what they are facing with a balance between providing too much information or not enough. I try to meet the patient where they are at and with what they can handle at that time.”
