What makes a good doctor

It used to be said that in every family one would wish to have a doctor, a lawyer and a priest. Presumably this would get you out of any difficult situation whether it was health-related, legal or spiritual.In an age where celebrity rules and your worth is measured by your column inches or time on television, certain professions have slipped in desirability, and the medical profession has suffered from this.

For those who are still interested in joining the medical profession, they might like to know what is required of a doctor or surgeon.For being a good doctor isn’t only about having the ability to successfully wield a single use surgical instrument or skilfully use any type of surgical instrument, it is also the ability to deal with patients in the right way, having the right personality and an open approach to medicine and knowledge as a whole.

Constantly listening to what a patient tells them is not only for the benefit of the patient’s state of mind but also useful for giving the doctor clues about the individual’s condition.Additionally, a doctor who is aware that they might be wrong, is ultimately and ironically less likely to make mistakes. Equally, this humility also encourages the doctor to keep learning, from their peers as well as from studies and lectures.The biggest challenge to the medical profession stems from the fact that patients are now able to sue doctors.

Some regard this as fair – they have put their trust in their doctor and they were failed by them  – while others say this undermines doctors and that doctors are only human, and the threat of a court case will affect all doctors and surgeons for the worse.Ultimately, we need to trust that doctors and surgeons will simply do the best they can. They will use single use surgical instruments and all other surgical instruments to the best of their ability, and sometimes that won’t be enough.
For those times, perhaps we should turn to a priest rather than a lawyer.