I read a piece in the NYTimes today titled "Bring Doctors to the Dying Patient's Bedside". I applauded this movement that emphasize the human side of medical treatments and cares. We are all humans. Doctors are humans with medical expertise. Patients are humans with expertise on their illness, symptoms, etc. It is very nice to hear that they have the white coat ceremony in which first-year medical students pledge to provide compassionate care.
Lester Z. Lieberman, founding chairman of the Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey said that "we are hoping to gain some leverage with these young doctors, so that they go out and practice and treat their patients as human beings and press their colleagues to do the same."
Parallel to programs in medical schools, there is progress in the science of humanism as well. Dr. David T. Stern, vice chair of professionalism at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York said "what makes a difference is that we now have ways to measure professional behavior."
"While identifying professionalism, compassion, and patient-centered behavior was once an I-know-it-when-I-see-it-endeaver, deans and faculty can now weigh actual indicators of humanism on evaluations."
Here is the link to the article
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