Each member of your healthcare team has a valuable role to get you the care you need—including yourself. Being open and honest about your condition will help you advocate for your health to work towards your treatment goals. You can be prepared with materials, like a personal action plan, to help you and your care team.
Find out about a treatment option for moderate to severe ulcerative colitis and moderate to severe Crohn’s disease.
Your team may include the following people:
Gastroenterologist
A gastroenterologist is a doctor who specializes in diseases of the digestive system (who sometimes also specializes in inflammatory bowel disease, or IBD) and that leads the healthcare team, performs exams and tests, makes diagnoses, administers treatments, and prescribes medications.
To help communicate clearly with your team and have more productive appointments, you can:
Doctors have lots of patients–you have to take all of this in your own hands. Nobody is going to be an advocate or push for you. You have to do that for yourself.
Coming prepared and having open, honest conversations are ways to make doctor visits more productive.
Search for a doctor in your area who specializes in IBD.
Learn about your condition, how to talk with your doctor, and how to meet treatment goals.
Explore different tools and get support for managing your Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis (UC).
It's not always easy to talk about IBD symptoms. Here's a guide that can make it easier.
Find out how much time your disease is impacting your life. Answer 5 quick questions to get 3 personalized, actionable steps.