Listening to Patti and David Skolnik speak about their late son Michael really brought to light how failures in communication can have devastating consequences. Though there were many missteps in the handling of Michael’s case, one area of concern that really stood out was the failure in communication between Michael’s family doctor and his neurosurgeon. Despite the family doctor’s unease that the surgery was being performed unnecessarily, the surgeon quickly diminished those concerns on the basis that the family doctor was “just a GP.” We often discuss how interprofessional collaboration and shared decision making with patients are lacking, but too often we forget that even within our own professions, there are many problems that can create tension and conflict and ultimately result in poor patient care. How can we work with patients and other professions, if we can’t work together within our own groups. I’ve witnessed this all too often… Continue reading
Wow. I’m not even sure how to reflect on the amazing day we had today. From the horrors of the Michael Skolnik case video, to the excitement of being the first group ever to save Stewie (our egg ‘patient’), to the heartbreaking story that Carole courageously shared with the class, today has been emotional and eye-opening.
So many moments today, as we listened to and became engrossed in the narratives being shared, I found my face scrunched up or my mouth falling open wondering how we could possibly treat our patients and families in some of the ways that we do. I like to believe that people are good and generally do the best they can. And yet, hearing about health care providers who ignore and belittle a mother worried about her child, or administrators who threaten a mother who just lost her child to… Continue reading