Humility and empathy are always important Posted by Jeremy Steinman on Apr 11, 2013 in Campus Life, Domestic Issues, Opinion | 1 comment There’s this idea in statistics that if a number is so small, for purposes of calculations, it can be equated to zero. For example, if I’m $1,000,000 in debt, I can buy 2 concert tickets for $30, and I’m still 1 million dollars in debt (look for my next column on how groupon is ruining our economy). Photo courtesy of craigmanderson.files.wordpress Photo courtesy of craigmanderson.files.wordpress When I entered med school, I thought I knew a lot; I’ve probably tripled my knowledge in just eight months. I have hopefully nine more years of education for my dream specialty, which is to become an expert in one specific field of medicine. In that same vein, medicine is just one profession in literally thousands of different professions that exist in the world. So, statistically speaking, I know one over infinity things, which is absolutely nothing. In and of itself, it is humbling to think that I know as much as Kim Kardashian. It is scary to know that the future surgeons of America are on the intelligence level of Khloe, Kourtney, Kanye and K-Lamar Odom. My classmates might remember that a patient presenting with a bitemporal hemianopsia and hyperthyroidism might have a pituitary adenoma, but they sure as heck won’t be able to fix it themselves unless they are a surgeon. But did you know med students learn other things besides medicine in medical school? In the first few weeks of school, I corrected professors and asked people who have been at their jobs for multiple years if they could make things a bit more convenient for me. I was completely oblivious that what I was doing had a fairly profound effect on how I came off to other people. I also did not realize that one of the deans was CC’ed on a few of these emails. During a one-on-one meeting, he graciously explained to me that he’d rather my disrespect be a problem now than when I was a practicing M.D. so I could change (I’d like to take this time to say that I’m closer to a middle school diploma than I am to becoming a functional doctor). Now, I’m down to just correcting professors so I’m making strides. But that doesn’t mean everyone changes — I’m certain that everybody reading this is familiar with one of your doctors acting all high and mighty like Macklemore with his $20. The main root of this problem is that doctors, for one reason or another, can ignore certain aspects of a patient’s presentation; this upsets people. A neurosurgeon recently said to us “Listen to what the patient says! It’s not difficult like rocket science.” Yes, it’s not rocket science to listen, but it IS brain surgery! Most of the doctors I’ve seen in my life have been somewhere between “good” and “LOLWAT did you just say to me?” in the ‘listening to the patient’ department. The physicians at the Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center are spectacularly good, which means that one of their most unique skills is being not only good doctors, but being completely patient-centric; furthermore, they are who I’m learning from. I wonder, how can doctors go through years of training and that concept is not one that sticks? Wake Forest makes the students, ask the questions “What do you think it is,” and “How is this most affecting your life” as part of every patient interview. These are, on the surface, not explicitly medically relevant questions and we may feel as if they are simply lip service to establish patient rapport, but having those questions asked to me when I’m a patient is simply amazingly helpful. Studies have actually shown that outcomes are improved because of better doctor-patient communication. To put this in other words: 60 percent of the time, it works all the time. Even more big picture, these concepts are applicable to everyone still in undergrad. I’m sure seniors who have job offers know that they’re the Big Men on Campus because they’ve been in college for four years and know everything- that’s why they have a job. That doesn’t mean they can’t go into their new job and learn something new. Everybody knows freshmen know nothing, like me, so just copy-paste everything I’ve said about me for them. Bill Nye once said that “Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don’t.” Take that to heart, because this man was so smart, he convinced TV executives that his show’s theme song should be some dude chanting his name. That theme turned out to be an iconic theme of the 90s. Believe me when I say it’ll help you. Trust me — I’m [almost] a doctor (or don’t, because I don’t know anything).
Posted on: Thu, 10 Apr 2014 07:00:26 +0000
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