The pinnacle of medicine seems not to be knowing how to heal someone, but how to help someone.
Nearly a third of my life has been spent preparing, both in and out of school, to reach a point of having the knowledge necessary to provide healing. Yet this goal seems so distant, despite spending numerous hours and days seeing multitudes of patients confined in the hospital due to their debilitating illness. Countless hours have been spent delving into complex pathophysiologic processes, multi-tiered pharmacologic therapies, and vast interventional strategies, all aimed at resolving any particular ailment that may present itself. But all this information seems to disintegrate, when speaking face-to-face with others at their most vulnerable time. The intricate details behind the processes at work in one’s body seem neither relevant, nor relatable. At moments like these, I often witness the patient brushing aside the options offered, leaving me with the conundrum of whether and how to convince another individual to let themself be healed.
It’s perplexing, how someone can reach such a degree of physical decline to be resigned to a hospital, yet find the mental fortitude to both question and deny the aid that is offered. Feelings of frustration begin flooding my head, and I start to question my training, my understanding of medicine, and my very commitment to the goal I set out to achieve when first beginning my medical career.
I ask myself is this part of my role, to have to persuade another to care for him or herself, even beyond what others seem to do. I start to think, perhaps this isn’t for me. Perhaps all the knowledge I have amassed until this point is worthless, until I know how to convince another to trust in me, in the hospital, and in the medical field.
It’s fascinating to arrive at the realization that, as a medical provider, serving another doesn't end at the point of knowing how to heal, but carries much further to the point of being able to help others heal themselves.
The culmination of my medical training, though only a few years away, seems so distant from the image I envisioned of being a qualified and accomplished physician. Despite the vast medical knowledge I will have procured by the end of my schooling, it’s become quite apparent how deficient one can still be, lacking the proper skills needed to actually help another. Proficiency in medical knowledge has presented itself as only the first step along the path of learning to serve others.
Patients often don’t understand why they are sick. They often don’t see medical intervention as the resolution of their symptoms. They may be happy and willing to trust the medical provider’s advice, but at times will refuse any medical intervention. Sometimes, providing reassurance about the efficacy of a therapy, or clarifying the disease pathology, may be enough to ease a patient into treatment. Other times, despite your best effort, a patient simply doesn’t feel comfortable moving forward.
Many factors play a role in the patient’s decision. At times a distrust in the medical establishment is present. Other times one fears aggressive intervention, despite the possibility of gaining more years of life. Ensuring one is comfortable around their provider, and can trust his or her opinion surrounding the options presented, is crucial. Aiming to ease and address any concerns presented is a priority, yet has clearly been shown to be an extremely difficult task to accomplish. Yet, the patient’s ultimate decision regarding any intervention seems to be beyond what our capability and role may be.
Our goal as physicians is to provide the tools needed for individuals to heal themselves. We are often limited to paving a pathway for others to journey towards health. The highest goal of medicine seems to be reaching a partnership with patients that allows for a mutual understanding of what is possible to do, and moving forward together.