32. What Matters to You: A Simple Question That Transforms Care in Switzerland

In healthcare, we’re trained to move fast, to diagnose, treat, and fix. But what happens when we slow down just enough to ask a different question: What matters to you? In this episode, we reflect on how one simple question can transform not just clinical decisions, but relationships, trust, and meaning for patients, families, and clinicians. Christian von Plessen shares what happens when we stop asking “What’s the matter?” and start asking “What matters to you?”. Whether you're wearing a stethoscope or the hospital gown, this seemingly simple question is a reminder of why connection matters.References:von Plessen C, Vasserot K, Bonnevie L, Coelho V, Dell'Eva E, Piazza V, Staines A. “What matters to you ?” From campaign to daily practice. Rev Med Suisse. 2025 Jun 4;21(921):1192-1196. French. doi: 10.53738/REVMED.2025.21.921.47318.Barry MJ, Edgman-Levitan S. Shared decision making — the pinnacle of patient-centered care. N Engl J Med. 2012;366(9):780-781. doi:10.1056/NEJMp1109283.Staines A, Laroussi-Libeault L, Coelho V, Pomey MP. “What matters to you?”: a powerful question to unlocking partnership in care. Int J Qual Health Care. 2025;37(1):mzaf007. doi:10.1093/intqhc/mzaf007.Barry M. Ask “what matters to you?” when it matters most. Institute for Healthcare Improvement Blog. September 17, 2019. Accessed April 11, 2026.Janerka C, Hooper AR, Sanders B, Gallagher O. How has ‘what matters to you’ been used for patient care? A scoping review. Health Expect. 2025;28:e14300. doi:10.1111/hex.14300.Kebede S. Ask patients “what matters to you?” rather than “what’s the matter?”. BMJ. 2016;354:i4045. doi:10.1136/bmj.i4045.