He Loves Me...He Loves Me Not...

(Doctors can either bring love or hate to the lives of the patients.)

I have mixed feelings of the current debate and status of compassion in medicine. In some ways, I feel like the need for compassion is being more apparent and awareness is being raised. At the same time, I feel like so many professionals in the medical field are in for the wrong reason and lacking the compassion that needs to be present to successfully help their patients. In Medicine and Compassion: A Tibetan Lama’s Guidance for Caregivers, the authors discuss the current need for compassion in the medical field in regards to patient interactions.

About three years ago, I had a large white patch on my elbow. I did was unsure of what this may be, so I went to my dermatologist, Dr. Miller. Upon seeing the patch, he assured me that it was a wart and proceeded to try to burn it off. It did not go away. He tried again to burn it off.
(Pictured is a patch of psoriasis similar to the one I found on my elbow.) And it still did not go away. At this point, I was frustrated, sick of getting liquid nitrogen poured on my arm with no avail and ready to move on to another doctor. Dr. Miller had been incompetent and although he was friendly, he was unable to diagnose me correctly. I then moved on to Dr. Francis and boy was that a mistake!

The minute I walked into Dr. Francis’ office, an office assistant who was not particularly friendly handed me a ridiculously large stack of papers to fill out before I would be on the list to be seen. A half hour later, I was taken to the back and sat in a room to wait for the doctor. Finally, Dr. Francis came in. He was an older gentleman, slightly overweight, not particularly good looking for his age. He was hairy and quickly introduced himself, then diving right into my problem. He looked at my arm and with few questions asked of me, he diagnosed me with psoriasis. Psoriasis is an overproduction of skin cells that results in patches of itchy, often times scaly skin. This is what the white patch on my arm had been—not a wart. Despite his knowledge of dermatology and ability to successfully diagnose my skin condition, his attitude and personality was extremely negative. I remember sitting the room with him, slightly shocked about the skin condition I was just told I had, while he blew off my concerns and questions. My sister was with me too and was concerned as well. Her concerned were dismissed with mine.

We walked out of that doctors office and never returned. Commonly, “ when patients are seriously ill, their physical situation may be amplified by a lot of anguish and fear. They develop a great deal of hope that the doctor will be able to help them, but the hope is countered by the fear that nothing can be done, that perhaps the situation is hopeless” (31). Although psoriasis is not terminal, it is chronic and is seen in only 2-5% of the population.
In severe cases (such as the one pictured), psoriasis can cover the patient’s entire body causing them to experience discomfort and embarrassment to go in public. This was enough to stir up a bit of concern within me. Dr. Francis did nothing to ease this concern.

I have since found a new dermatologist, my friend’s father, Dr. Pederson, who is extremely knowledgeable, reliable, AND compassionate. He knows that “to truly help peoople suffer less, we need to combine our knowledge and medical skills with a compassionate attitude that helps the patient relax and have confidence in their care” (171). This knowledge has turned him into a superb doctor who can connect with his patients and truly make a difference.

I have realized that “clarity and purity allows the mind to have a greater impact on others” (71). With the intent on going into the medical field, it is important for me to understand how I can connect with my patients most effectively. I am grateful that I have come into contact with both compassionate and uncaring doctors so I can better understand the kind of doctor I want to be when the time comes.