a lost art

 

Even a physician sometimes needs to see a physician. Last week I made an appointment for myself following an injury that occurred over a month ago. I already knew what the diagnosis was, and I'd been treating it appropriately, but things weren't getting better so I gave in and went.

"I told the doctor

I broke my leg in two places.

He told me to stop going to those places."

~Henny Youngman~

Most of the time, when I see a doctor around here, he is a colleague I've known for a long time. I trained with him or practiced in the same community with him for years. We've watched medicine change over time, and it always comes up in conversation. How sad it is that the physician/patient relationship is no longer what it used to be. How little time we have with our patients. How continuity of care has been sacrificed to efficiency. How the drive for corporate profit outweighs the compassionate care of our patients.

"The practice of medicine is an art, not a trade;

a calling, not a business;

a calling in which your heart will be exercised

equally with your mind."

~Sir William Osler~

So...after the doctor confirmed my self-diagnosis and concurred with my treatment plan, he started the familiar lament. How he missed the good old days. How things will never be the same again. What a shame it is that we no longer know who our patients are aside from their illness or injury. That we no longer have time to listen to their stories. That we have lost our enduring connection with them. 

This is a problem. Healing, or failure to heal, occurs in the context of a person's relationships with family and friends, his surroundings, expectations and perceptions, as well as his emotional, mental, and spiritual life. If the patient is denied the opportuniy to tell his story the way he sees it...the way he experiences it...part of him will never heal. 

"Healthcare is for truthful,

authentic, discovering

accounts of self."

~Rita Charon, MD~

Narrative in medicine is a lost art. Back in the days when physicians were in charge of their profession, when they took time to express compassion, and build connection, they enjoyed a more holistic relationship with patients. They built a trusting kinship that helped patients heal, something we miss more than ever, today.

"A medicine practiced without a genuine

awareness of what patients go through

may fulfil its technical goals,

but it is an empty medicine..."

~Rita Charon, MD~

jan