Empathy needs to be more than superficial
Editor - I have just finished reading a very moving
article in the studentBMJ, entitled "What if it is
cancer?"1 I have had a minor operation to excise a small
cyst on my scalp, and I can certainly empathise with what was said.
Despite the wonderful treatment I received it was still one of the most
terrifying experiences I have had. Being at the other end of the
scalpel really brought home that my sympathy for patients has only ever
been skin deep (excuse the pun). The nurses called me "good girl,"
and the surgeon told me I was "so brave," but this showed that
their empathy, like mine with my patients, was superficial.
Perhaps it was my knowledge of possible complications, or the indignity
of wearing a gaping gown in such a familiar place that left me
trembling, but as the author of the aforementioned article stated, it
is as if you have become someone else when you become the patient. I am
now minus a lump, but I have gained an insight that medical school
cannot teach, and I will certainly not be criticising any patient for
overreacting in the future.
Elizabeth Galloway, final year medical student , St George's Hospital Medical School, London SW17 0RE
Email: email
studentBMJ 2000;08:131-174 May ISSN 0966-6494
- Anonymous. What if it is cancer? studentBMJ 2000;8:117. (April.)
