Saying thank you to a doctor is a great way to show them appreciation.
For major events like having a baby, surgery, saving your life, or other emergencies, I recommend sending a thank-you note shortly thereafter (within a couple of weeks).
You can also send your doctor a thank you note on the special days of the year that celebrate doctors:
- National Doctor’s Day is celebrated on March 30th.
- National Women Physicians Day is on February 3rd.
Whatever the reason, if you are feeling grateful to your doctor, take a few minutes to thank him or her. Doctors can feel intimidating because of their title, but remember they are regular people. They studied for many years to earn the Doctor title. They still have feelings and like to be appreciated!
My life was saved by a doctor when I was born six weeks early. My twin brother and I were born in the early morning hour, and he arrived first. Somewhere along the way, the nurses recognized that the on-call doctor was making poor choices regarding the delivery. My mother’s regular baby doctor arrived and saved the day! I was born breech, 34 minutes after my brother. I was only given a 20% chance of surviving. If the regular doctor had not come in, I may not be here today writing this for you!
The examples below will help you to get started with your thank you note wording.
Saying Thank You To Doctor Tips:
- I recommend starting the thank-you note with Dear Dr. [Last Name] unless you are on a first-name basis with your doctor.
- There are hundreds of possible reasons to see a doctor. When you write a thank-you note to your doctor, be sure to include that reason.
Thank You Note to Doctor Message Examples
The first three sets of examples are for thanking your doctor following a specific event.
Delivering Your Baby
Thank you for delivering [baby name] and all the care leading up to the delivery. I have recovered well and appreciate all the advice and tips you gave me beforehand about how to deliver a baby. The class you recommend at [community center or another place] was fantastic and helped me to feel less anxious about the process. I look forward to seeing you again when I become pregnant again.
Delivering my latest baby was much easier than I anticipated. Thank you for coming to the hospital during the middle of the night to deliver [baby name]. I was very glad to have you there since you’ve been caring for me since the start of the pregnancy. Your easy-going manner helped me to relax. I am glad everything went so well!
Thank you for recognizing that I needed to have an emergency C-section. From what the nurses told me, your quick decision and analysis of the situation likely saved my life and the baby’s. We will always feel gratitude towards you. [Baby’s name] and I are both recovering well.
Thank you to Doctor for Saving Your Life
You are amazing! Thank you for saving my life. I’m so thankful that you noticed the abnormal blood result and ordered the ultrasound which clearly showed the blockage. The pain was immeasurable and I felt like was not going to make it. As you later shared, I would not have made it much longer without having surgery.
I was so scared when I found out I had diabetes that I ignored it. I am grateful to your office staff for their consistent calls requesting that I have a checkup visit. If it weren’t for their persistence, I might never have made an appointment. Thank you for checking my blood levels at that visit. As you know, I was nearly in a coma from the high sugar level. Having that test done saved my life!
Having surgery is scary, knowing that there is a risk that something can go wrong. I’m am thankful for all you did to save me when things didn’t go as expected [can include details of what went wrong]. I am here today because of your efforts. I will always be grateful for what you did.
Thank You After Doctor Surgery
Thank you for your excellent work while performing surgery on me for [condition]. Your hands are skilled as my incision is very small and my pain has been minimal during recovery. I will be recommending you to everyone I know who also as [condition].
I am grateful for the surgery you did to remove my gall bladder. I feel so much better now with it out. Thank you for taking it on despite the tests did not indicate a major problem. The tests on it after it was removed confirmed it was making me sick!
I was very nervous about having surgery for [whatever surgery was for]! Thank you for describing what would happen before, during, and after the surgery. The information provided helped me to move forward with the surgery. I am feeling much better now and am thankful that there were not any complications during the surgery.
Thanking Your General Care Physician
Thank you for your reliable care year after year. The guidance you have given me regarding exercise and nutrition at my annual physicals has proved to keep me healthy. I am grateful for only needing to see you once a year.
I appreciate your help with my [condition]. Thank you for answering all my questions about it. More information helps me feel better about the medication that is prescribed and why I need to take it. I also enjoy your easy going manner and jokes!
Thank you for squeezing in my daughter, Violet, last week for her annual physical. She needed it to participate in volleyball and of course, I forgot about it until the day before practices were to start. I am happy to report that she made the team!
Heidi has been writing thank you notes for more than 30 years and is the author of A Modern Guide to Writing Thank-You Notes. Her goal is to help people write better thank-you notes by providing tips and examples.