A doctor remarked that had she known that a patient was a consultant she would have spoken differently: he had broken his femur and she would have said that he had a femoral fracture and needed some pain killers and an x-ray. She didn’t say what she said instead or would say and found my request for clarification “annoying”.
If I broke my hip, I would have no feelings about the use of the word “hip” instead of “neck of femur”. I would not consider the word itself condescending. I do not believe myself atypical in this.
“The meaning of the message is the response you get.” Even a professor of orthopaedics would not take exception to “hip”, he would simply ask to see the x-rays: a picture is worth a thousand words.
Simple, clear, unambiguous language is not exceptionable. If your language can be understood by a six year old, it can unexceptionably be understood by an adult. Being simple, clear and direct is no mean feat.
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