Humanitarianism As A Politics Of Life Analysis

I want to be the kind of doctor that offers guidance to my patients rather than dictates. What matters to my patient is more important than my personal decision. I want to know my patients and not just let them be a number. After reading about the two neurosurgeons Gawande 's dad talked to, it became more clear what kind of doctor I wanted to be. One of the neurosurgeons became annoyed by all the questions his dad had and acted like he knew best, whether or not the patient liked it. This paternalistic style of practice might have worked at a time when medical care was scarce, but in the US where a majority of people have access to medical care, the quality of the care is valued just as much as the treatment.(add) The pursuit of universal …show more content…
In Didier Fassin’s Humanitarianism as a Politics of Life, he sets us up with the question, to paraphrase, should we risk the lives of a few to save the lives of many? Although the context of the article is different, the question remains the same. I see a lot of kids everyday for short periods of time. I might not remember all of them but I still try to listen and assess them thoroughly. If the time allotted for each child is shortened, the risk of making a mistake increases; sometimes mistakes even lead to death. We should always strive to increase access to healthcare but the Act might not be the way to go about it. Adding more people into an already fast paced environment may have adverse effects and they will not have the adequate care they deserve. Similar to the scenario in Fassin’s article, instead of sending more healthcare providers to a risky area, we have to target the source and end the war. I believe all life to be sacred, so giving a misdiagnosis would only …show more content…
A great set of traits to look for in a doctor was described in How Doctors Think called the “3 C’s”. The 3 C’s are communication, critical thinking, and compassion. This is demonstrated in a passage from Being Mortal by Gawande. Gawande’s dad was contemplating whether to have a risky surgery to take out a tumor on his spinal cord. With Gawande’s dad also being a surgeon, he asked a lot of questions about the equipment and procedure for the surgery. The first neurosurgeon he talked to got annoyed by all his questions and overall, wanted to be the one in charge rather than be equals with his patient. The second neurosurgeon was the opposite; he answered all his questions one by one without hesitation. The surgeon sat across from him at eye level and did not have any other preoccupations. He did not assert that surgery needed to be done but rather guided his dad in making a decision that was based on his own standards. I’m sure this conversation also let the neurosurgeon think critically about his own decisions on the diagnosis/procedure. This is the kind of doctor I want to