On Being a Physician

No greater opportunity, responsibility, or obligation can fall to the lot of a human being than to become a physician. In the care of the suffering, [the physician] needs technical skill, scientific knowledge, and human understanding.… Tact, sympathy, and understanding are expected of the physician, for the patient is no mere collection of symptoms, signs, disordered functions, damaged organs, and disturbed emotions. [The patient] is human, fearful, and hopeful, seeking relief, help, and reassurance.

The physician is not just a prescriber medicaments but a symbol of all that is transferable from one human to another - short of immortality.

We may not live forever, but we persist in the notion lotion that the physician possesses the science and artistry that will provide us with endless deferrals

(“To cure sometimes, to relieve often, and to comfort always”)

Integrate biology, social and behavioral science

Leadership

Personality Apropos to a Physician:

Read on Perspectives in Medicine

Techniques for giving bad news.

Category	Technique
Preparation	Forecast possibility of bad news Clarify who should attend the bad news visit Clarify who should give the bad news
Setting	Give bad news in person Give bad news in private Sit down and make eye contact
Delivery	Identify what the patient already knows Give the news clearly and unambiguously Identify important feelings and concerns
Emotional support	Remain with the patient and listen Use empathic statements Invite further dialogue
Information	Use simple, clear words and concepts Summarize and check patient's understanding

On Being a Physician

"Guérir parfois, soulager souvent, réconforter et à toujours"

(“To cure sometimes, to relieve often, and to comfort always”)

Integrate biology, social and behavioral science

First Year