No doctor wants to have this conversation with a patient. For everyone’s sake, we must

‘Serious illness conversations don’t happen anywhere near as often as warranted,’ Ranjana Srivastava writes. Photograph: PeopleImages.com/Yuri A/Shutterstock

It could be her usual generosity or disquiet, subtly disguised, but she leads by asking about “the kids”. Mine, not hers.

The question from a patient who has known me for years is a reminder that goodwill in medicine goes both ways. I scroll to a photo of my daughter, flanked by her brothers.