Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- List of contributors
- Prologue. Breaking the silence
- Letter from a young doctor
- Part I On caring for patients
- Section 2 Problems in truth-telling
- Section 3 Setting boundaries
- 9 From professional to personal
- 10 Losing empathy
- 11 The limits of compassion
- Part II On becoming a “team player”: searching for esprit de corps and conflicts of socialization
- Section 5 Argot, jargon, and questionable humor: assuming the mantle at the patient's expense
- Section 6 Making waves: questioning authority and the status quo
- Section 7 Perceiving misconduct and whistle-blowing: observing peers or superiors commit an act deemed unethical
- Epilogue: Using this book
- Glossary
- Index
10 - Losing empathy
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 February 2015
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- List of contributors
- Prologue. Breaking the silence
- Letter from a young doctor
- Part I On caring for patients
- Section 2 Problems in truth-telling
- Section 3 Setting boundaries
- 9 From professional to personal
- 10 Losing empathy
- 11 The limits of compassion
- Part II On becoming a “team player”: searching for esprit de corps and conflicts of socialization
- Section 5 Argot, jargon, and questionable humor: assuming the mantle at the patient's expense
- Section 6 Making waves: questioning authority and the status quo
- Section 7 Perceiving misconduct and whistle-blowing: observing peers or superiors commit an act deemed unethical
- Epilogue: Using this book
- Glossary
- Index
Summary
CASE
“Patients I don't like”
Patients I don't like fall into two categories: those who are rude, offensive and I wouldn't like them under any circumstances, and those who behave in a way that makes it difficult for me to do my job – they are noncompliant, don't tell me when they are taking alternative therapies that may have a bearing on the treatment program, etc. I find that I give these patients less energy, less time and their care necessarily suffers. When I expressed these feelings to my chief he came down very hard on me and said that physicians owe all patients equally, but I find it is only human nature to make distinctions.
CASE
“Why should I invest in these patients?”
I have very strong feelings about patients who engage in self-destructive behaviors, e.g., obesity, smoking, drug abuse, etc. I tell them the risk factors; but for the most part they won't change their behavior. They respond with giggles or a look that says, “So what?” I keep my involvement with these patients to a minimum. I don't need to bang my head against a wall since they're not banging their heads. Just because I'm a resident why should I invest more in these patients than they are willing to invest in themselves?
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Ward EthicsDilemmas for Medical Students and Doctors in Training, pp. 104 - 112Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2001