THE HUBERT KAIRUKI MEMORIAL UNIVERSITYFACULTY OF MEDICINE AND NURSING DEPARTMENT OF BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCE AND MEDICAL ETHICSTOPIC:CALLING VERSUS DECISION MAKING TO BECOME A MEDICAL PROFESSION

PRESENTERSBEATA KILAMA

NEEMA JOHN

SCHOLASTICA LONGINO

VIOLETH SINGANO

KICHUNGO NGOMA

FACILITATED BY PROF. MASALAKULANGWA

DATE:10/06/2015

OBJECTIVES OF THE PRESENTATION

Introduction

Definition of the medical profession

The meaning of calling into the medical profession

Characteristics of a medical professional who has decided to join the medical field

Characteristics of a medical professional who has a calling into the medical field

Effects of work performance between an individual who has decided and who has a calling into the medical field

INTRODUCTIONIn the medical field some have a calling from inside to be medical practitioners while some just decide to become medical practitioners. Some decide due to the factors around them such as good grades or the parents` wishes or peer pressure or just the luxury of the white coat and the respect which comes with the profession.

This affects the functioning of the practitioner in such a way that the one with the calling mostly satisfies the patient`s needs due to the strong impulse or inclination towards the medical field in comparison to the one who has decided to engage in the medical field.

Definition of the medical profession

Medical profession –a body of individuals who are qualified to practice medicine.

Medical professional-an individual who provides preventive promotional or rehabilitative health care services in a systematic way to people families or communities

Calling- a strong impulse or inclination: an inner calling

Decision- cognitive process resulting in selection of a belief or a cause of action among several alternative possibilities.

The meaning of calling into the medical profession

“Oh! Medical school!” many exclaim as their eyes light up, “So you’re going to be a rich doctor.”

This response as well as most others we have received seemed to imply that medicine is an ideal profession if one is gifted enough to pursue it. Medicine has had the luxury of being one of the great professions within societies throughout history, along with practitioners in areas such as law and religion. Though some may argue that modernism has significantly transformed these historic societal roles, there is still a great deal of respect and prestige commanded by these positions. Perhaps our view is a bit romanticized, but we think there is value in viewing our future physicians as being called to the medical field to share their talents and abilities rather than being gifted enough to pursue professional prestige and a high salary.

The meaning of calling into the medical profession

This distinction seems particularly important for professions which deal in the treatment of people. To heal a person, whether it be his/her body or soul, requires both additional humility and more carefully defined goals. “With great power comes great responsibility.” Work which affects the lives of other human beings carries with it additional moral and ethical weight.

If a car is broken, for example, it is usually easy to identify one’s options and the implications of such decisions. This is not the case for a human being with a diverse array of needs from physiological to psycho-social. Thus these professions require careful deliberations to determine appropriate goals and limits, and without those goals and limits, there is a greater risk for a lack of congruency, leading to disagreements about the correct place of such professions in a given society.

The meaning of calling into the medical profession

Approaching a field such as medicine as a simple choice may undermine the humility it requires and further complicate our attempts to define its goals and limits. Studies continue to suggest that a substantial percent of physicians are dissatisfied with their profession due to pay and a growing gap between professional and personal expectations. We think physicians and their patients may be expecting infallible medical professionals who operate independently and achieve financial benefits, whereas modern medical practice continues to demand collaboration and greater humility.

If we felt that we chose medicine to achieve some personal gain, we would be more likely to expect personal benefits which outweigh our sacrifices. Approaching the medical field as a calling shifts one’s focus to the positive impact one can make in his/her community, which may add both to the satisfaction of medical practitioners as well as their patients.

The meaning of calling into the medical profession

Before the remarkable technological growth of the last century, the medical field was limited in its power. Today nearly every known condition has a course of treatment, many with high rates of success. This newly obtained power has sparked a number of debates over the last few decades about the proper limits and goals of medicine. It is curious to us that conversations surrounding healthcare reform seem primarily concerned with money. It seems that for many economic concerns define the proper place of medicine and we must simply balance affordability and access with innovation.

Characteristics of a medical professional who has a calling into the medical field

Has a Good Bedside Manner: A great medical professional has a good bedside manner and makes patients feel comfortable and at ease during exams and treatments.

Has a Sense of Empathy: A great medical professional has a strong sense of empathy and understands what it is to feel pain and suffering. They are supportive and have a genuine interest in improving a patient's well-being.

Has Great Communication Skills: A great medical professional has excellent communication skills. They can explain complicated medical terminology in laymen's terms to the average patient. They also have excellent listening skills and take the time to understand what a patient's needs are.

Has Sharp Problem Solving Skills: A great medical professional has excellent problem solving skills and can quickly determine solutions to problems. Working in health care, by definition, involves solving problems of the human body.

Is Always Very Thorough: A great medical professional is always very thorough in their work. They recognize that the smallest oversight can have grave consequences and therefore are sure to cover all the bases in everything they do.

Characteristics of a medical professional who has a calling into the medical field

Offers Support for Patient Decisions: A great medical professional acts as a partner with a patient in treatment decisions and understands that ultimately, all decisions lie in the hands of the patient. They offer full support of patient decisions.

Offers Time to Patients: A great medical professional spends adequate time with their patients and never rushes through an exam during a busy day. They give each patient enough time to make a proper diagnosis or to offer a thorough treatment.

Possesses Significant Knowledge: A great medical professional has extensive knowledge of the human body and its ailments. They are not afraid to admit when they do not know something and will either research it or refer a patient to someone better qualified.

Possesses Strong Sense of Ethics: A great medical professional has a strong sense of ethics and never compromises their integrity or values.

Pursues Continuing Education: A great medical professional recognizes that the medical field is full of new research and developments, and they stay on top of everything new in the field. They read research journals and take training classes to stay current.

Characteristics of a medical professional who has decided to join the medical field

Has a Bad Bedside Manner: A medical professional has a bad bedside manner and makes patients feel uncomfortable and unease during exams and treatments.

Has no Sense of Empathy: A medical professional has a weak sense of empathy and can’t understands what it is to feel pain and suffering. They are unsupportive and have no genuine interest in improving a patient's well-being.

Has Poor Communication Skills: A medical professional has poor communication skills. They cannot explain complicated medical terminology in a laymen's terms to the average patient. They may also have poor listening skills and take no time to understand what a patient's needs are.

Has Slow Problem Solving Skills: A medical professional has slow problem solving skills and slowly determines solutions to problems. Working in health care, by definition, involves solving problems of the human body.

Characteristics of a medical professional who has decided to join the medical field

Offers No Support for Patient Decisions: A medical professional does not acts as a partner with a patient in treatment decisions and understands that ultimately, all decisions lie in the hands of the patient. They do not offer full support of patient decisions.

Offers No Time to Patients: A medical professional does not spends adequate time with their patients and rushes through an exam during a busy day. They never give each patient enough time to make a proper diagnosis or to offer a thorough treatment.

Possesses Weak Sense of Ethics: A medical professional has a weak sense of ethics and compromises their integrity or values.

Does not Pursues Continuing Education: A medical professional does not recognizes that the medical field is full of new research and developments, and they do not stay on top of everything new in the field. They do not read research journals and take training classes to stay current.

Characteristics of a medical professional who has not decided nor being called to join the medical field

This medical professional has mixed characters of being decided and called

Mostly likely to happen is medical malpractice refers to professional negligence by a health care professional or provider in which treatment provided was substandard, and caused harm, injury or death to a patient. In the majority of cases, the medical malpractice or negligence involved a medical error, possibly in diagnosis, medication dosage, health management, treatment or aftercare. The error may have been because nothing was done (an act of omission), or a negligent act

Another character he/she regrets for the choice being made in future and might leave the medical field to do something else interesting to him/her.

Effects of work performance between an individual who has decided and who has a calling into the medical field

We can easily gather from the above that the individuals who merely have decided to enter into the medical field will only do what needs to be done with little regard to others or/and his/her patients, so as to gain the monthly salary and get their life going

While, the individual who has a calling into the medical profession will do whatever necessary so as to insure that their patients get the proper attention for a full recovery and thus fully realize the true meaning of being a doctor

RECOMMENDATION We would suggest that physicians should be servants of health and that health be the goal and limit of medicine. Of course defining health in a given society is no easy task; but if such a definition was achieved and universally accepted, we believe patients’ and physicians’ expectations may converge through this understanding, facilitating better patient-physician relationships and overall healthcare.

Patients may instead trust their physicians as servants of their health rather than prestigious professionals hoping to make a lot of money or powerful crusaders against death. Physicians may also face less ambiguity and greater satisfaction serving the health of his/her community rather than striving to achieve a return for their investment. Furthermore we may find ourselves agreeing on more of the tough, ethical dilemmas facing modern medicine

CONCLUSIONSurely we would like to believe that our physicians sincerely care about our well-being and are not simply trying to maximize their profits by balancing our demand for ‘caring’ with their supply. For this and many other reasons, medicine is unique and economics alone will not provide us with the insight we desire. Rather than struggling to answer each ethical dilemma facing modern medicine individually when they arise, we think significant insight can be gained by attempting to trace these dilemmas back to their source and then posing more global questions.

Thus we conclude not with a magic answer but set of broader questions and a calling to physicians and patients alike to work towards a better understanding of health in our society.

THINK BIG…….