Dr Dharmaraj Karthikesan
Very interesting reading and useful for the contemporary medical education system – doctor relationship
As I continue to mature and evolve in clinical practice I have encountered a variety of doctors. And most of them share a common trait. They live under a grand delusion that their speciality is the only one that matters and worth doing. They have strong negative feelings about doctors who have chosen a different career path and have a deep seated urge to insult them at every opportunity they get.
This has to stop. Every facet of medicine is equally important.
Every single doctor provides an important aspect of patient care which complements the work of the other. We work like a grand complex machine where every part is imperative to the running of sound and safe clinical practice. We are all equally important. And that is the often forgotten ‘stereotype’.
Family physicians and general practitioners are often the object of irate registrars and consultants who feel they contribute nothing to proper patient care not realizing the crucial role these primary care physicians play in screening patients prior to sending them to tertiary care.
The doctor-patient relationship paradigm depends closely on the doctor-doctor relationship. Bad and damaging cultures foster a hostile atmosphere that erodes trust, tarnishes good communication and promotes disrespect within the medical community. The role doctors play in harming each other ubiquitously affects the patient’s care, however unintentionally.
If we work in an environment where we are kind, tolerant and respectful of each other, we will in turn be more humane to our patients. Young doctors will be nurtured in system that is steeped in kindness and compassion and they in turn will become sound clinicians who resonate the same values.
It is, as Plato once said “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle”.
Read full article
http://dharmarajkarthikesan.com/2015/05/09/dear-doctors-be-kind-to-each-other/
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