Behavior that would make me label a patient as difficult is when a patient somatizes. This type of patient manifests all the psychological stress they have been going through physically. For example, a patient may decide to punch holes in walls and injure themselves when stressed. Other symptoms may be severe, ranging from loss of vision to rising or lowering their blood pressure which puts their lives at risk. Handling such types of patients is difficult and requires a lot of experience and quality care.
Another difficult patient is a ‘frequent flyer’; this is a term used to define a patient who is frequently hospitalized for the same type of symptoms of disease with the treatment methods being non-responsive. Although some are genuinely sick, some of the patients in this category might have psychological disorders, which give them an affinity for visiting hospitals.
A demanding patient is labeled difficult because they are sick and require medical attention, yet they have their demands on how they should be treated and what should and should not be done. They make it difficult for physicians to give them the appropriate treatment.
A rude patient will always be difficult to handle as they have short tempers and use derogatory language toward the medical staff that attends to them. Their rudeness might extend to other patients, and this makes it difficult to tend to them.
Patients with secondary gain; are patients who have ulterior motives and use medical treatment during hospital visits as a pretense for something else. Secondary gains include financial compensation and motivation to miss work. A medical practitioner could become an accomplice without knowing, which is not good for their conscience.