NYTimes: Aiding the Doctor Who Feels Cancer's Toll
Doctors who care for the terminally ill may find themselves sharing their patients' pain and facing burnout from the stresses of their jobs. http://nyti.ms/TflH9F
I can definitely see how doctors have the "misperception that everything that can be done should be done". Doctors are trained to help people and treat them doing all they can, but when the patient is terminally ill, the doctor needs to take a different approach. When a patient is terminally ill, they should be made as comfortable as possible with as minimal suffering as possible. This needs to be the new focus of the doctor. A palliative care doctor would be able to help with this issue. When doctors stop trying to treat the patient and realize that there is no hope for their recovery, I can understand how doctors would suffer. Although they know that they can not save everybody, they are in the profession to improve the lives of people. When they no longer have an control in doing this, that would be a struggle. As the article discusses, these doctors experience burnout and/or compassion fatigue. They are overworked and stressed because of the high demands of the job. They must have a way to escape, probably by doing something they enjoy. This will not only help them, but also they way they perform with patients. The patients will be happier if they have a doctor who is fully tuned into their needs and is not short tempered.
One aspect of this article I really liked was the focus on the doctor-patient relationship for terminally ill patients. I've often heard the saying that health care should treat the patient, not the disease. Focusing simply on the disease and not the emotions and personal needs of the patient leads to unnecessary treatments and pain. Because of the intense stress the doctor is under I can see why focusing on the disease would considerably easier and less emotionally taxing than focusing on the patient. A disease is objective and defined, acting in a predictable manner. A patient can be unpredictable, emotional, and the doctor may feel that the situation is more than he/she can emotionally provide. By using meditation and stress reducing techniques the doctor is better able to recognize the patient as an individual and provide, or refrain from providing, treatment based upon both the physical and emotional well being of the patient.
I completely agree with Evan that healthcare should be focused on the patient. To add under this topic, I will discuss The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. This film was so inspiring. It is very interesting that some of the movie was told from Jean-Do's perspective. We were given insight to his feelings and thoughts throughout the movie which made the film more enjoyable and easier to understand. In his case, he was somewhat fortunate (even though his situation overall was not) to be able to learn how to communicate. This brings us to a discussion of how important advance directives are. If a person can not communicate because of a medical condition, an advance directive is a help to doctors and loved ones. If loved ones do not know a person's wishes, it can place a huge burden on them and even cause problems between family members.
It is important that health-care providers have a holistic approach when caring for clients. This means that they do not only focus on the physical aspects of their health, but instead they look at their mind, body, and soul. This provides better health outcomes for the patient and give the provider a better understanding of their client. However, this holistic approach can be exhausting for health-care providers. It is important for all people working in the healthcare profession to take time to renew themselves to prevent burnout. Burnout can cause errors to be made and put your patients more at risk. It is important to take care of yourself so that you can fully take care of your patients.
As a health-care provider, I can see why physicians may get attached to their patients and feel their pain and frustration with them. In the first section of this article it talks about physicians throwing their patients into more test and therapies just because they do not want their patient to feel abandoned or hopeless. I can understand why these physicians do this, but I do not agree with it. The example they used in this article discusses a patient with cancer who is thrown into more chemo just to make them feel as though their is hope, when the doctor knows for a fact that the chemo will not help at all. I disagree with this because I believe that once a doctor does all they can do, and knows for certain that nothing will help their patient, they should be working on making their patents comfortable and help them live as enjoyable as a life as they can from that point on; rather than putting patients through possibly painful and pointless therapies at the end of their lives. In the second section of this article, they discussed physicians who suffered from compassion fatigue. this means that these physicians get so close to their patients that when their patients suffer, they suffer; when their patients feel hopeless, they feel hopeless, etc. The article say that this "results in emotional and physical exhaustion, a sense of detachment and a feeling of never being able to achieve one’s professional goals." Lastly, the article discusses how doctors should handle the stresses of taking care of these types of patients. It talks about breathing techniques and other techniques to de-stress and relax the physician; so that they will be able to care for their patients and not get burned out.
Heath care providers must be able to take a stand, as the physician to decide what is best for the patient. The physicians can become attached to the patients as they stand beside them as they struggle through their illness. However, the physician must know when nothing else can be done and when they must help the patient comfortably get through the remainder of their lives. Physicians can become overwhelmed and develop burnout and compassion fatigue. This can lead to the physician rejecting the patient or them not being able to make the best decision for the patient care. This occurs more frequently with physicians working with the terminally ill who have a poor outcome. Research has been done that says if physicians can meditate and concentrate on their inner selves to improve themselves it will better the patients. Physicians who are able to put the emotions aside in order to make the best care plan for the patient seem to have the best way of making the patient comfortable when delivering the news that the end is near. I believe that dragging out long procedures and tests that will no longer benefit the patient are more harmful then letting them know the end is near. It cannot be easy to tell a person that they will soon die. But I think the patient would be most comfortable with a physician who is confident and willing to tell the whole truth.
I can definitely see how health care workers get stressed and burnt out especially those that work in specialties that cause them to see terminally ill patients. It would be stressful I imagine that a doctor can't do anything to help a patient almost like they failed. Health care workers although need to recognize when they are stressed and burnt out because they are of no help when they are frazzled and cannot think critically and clearly. I think this article is good because someone has noticed that doctors work hard and can get burnt out and that they are doing something to help them. More doctors need to do something whether meditation running or reading whatever it is they need to do to wind down at the end of the day.
I can definitely see how doctors have the "misperception that everything that can be done should be done". Doctors are trained to help people and treat them doing all they can, but when the patient is terminally ill, the doctor needs to take a different approach. When a patient is terminally ill, they should be made as comfortable as possible with as minimal suffering as possible. This needs to be the new focus of the doctor. A palliative care doctor would be able to help with this issue. When doctors stop trying to treat the patient and realize that there is no hope for their recovery, I can understand how doctors would suffer. Although they know that they can not save everybody, they are in the profession to improve the lives of people. When they no longer have an control in doing this, that would be a struggle. As the article discusses, these doctors experience burnout and/or compassion fatigue. They are overworked and stressed because of the high demands of the job. They must have a way to escape, probably by doing something they enjoy. This will not only help them, but also they way they perform with patients. The patients will be happier if they have a doctor who is fully tuned into their needs and is not short tempered.
ReplyDeleteOne aspect of this article I really liked was the focus on the doctor-patient relationship for terminally ill patients. I've often heard the saying that health care should treat the patient, not the disease. Focusing simply on the disease and not the emotions and personal needs of the patient leads to unnecessary treatments and pain. Because of the intense stress the doctor is under I can see why focusing on the disease would considerably easier and less emotionally taxing than focusing on the patient. A disease is objective and defined, acting in a predictable manner. A patient can be unpredictable, emotional, and the doctor may feel that the situation is more than he/she can emotionally provide. By using meditation and stress reducing techniques the doctor is better able to recognize the patient as an individual and provide, or refrain from providing, treatment based upon both the physical and emotional well being of the patient.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Evan that healthcare should be focused on the patient. To add under this topic, I will discuss The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. This film was so inspiring. It is very interesting that some of the movie was told from Jean-Do's perspective. We were given insight to his feelings and thoughts throughout the movie which made the film more enjoyable and easier to understand. In his case, he was somewhat fortunate (even though his situation overall was not) to be able to learn how to communicate. This brings us to a discussion of how important advance directives are. If a person can not communicate because of a medical condition, an advance directive is a help to doctors and loved ones. If loved ones do not know a person's wishes, it can place a huge burden on them and even cause problems between family members.
ReplyDeleteIt is important that health-care providers have a holistic approach when caring for clients. This means that they do not only focus on the physical aspects of their health, but instead they look at their mind, body, and soul. This provides better health outcomes for the patient and give the provider a better understanding of their client. However, this holistic approach can be exhausting for health-care providers. It is important for all people working in the healthcare profession to take time to renew themselves to prevent burnout. Burnout can cause errors to be made and put your patients more at risk. It is important to take care of yourself so that you can fully take care of your patients.
ReplyDeleteAs a health-care provider, I can see why physicians may get attached to their patients and feel their pain and frustration with them. In the first section of this article it talks about physicians throwing their patients into more test and therapies just because they do not want their patient to feel abandoned or hopeless. I can understand why these physicians do this, but I do not agree with it. The example they used in this article discusses a patient with cancer who is thrown into more chemo just to make them feel as though their is hope, when the doctor knows for a fact that the chemo will not help at all. I disagree with this because I believe that once a doctor does all they can do, and knows for certain that nothing will help their patient, they should be working on making their patents comfortable and help them live as enjoyable as a life as they can from that point on; rather than putting patients through possibly painful and pointless therapies at the end of their lives. In the second section of this article, they discussed physicians who suffered from compassion fatigue. this means that these physicians get so close to their patients that when their patients suffer, they suffer; when their patients feel hopeless, they feel hopeless, etc. The article say that this "results in emotional and physical exhaustion, a sense of detachment and a feeling of never being able to achieve one’s professional goals." Lastly, the article discusses how doctors should handle the stresses of taking care of these types of patients. It talks about breathing techniques and other techniques to de-stress and relax the physician; so that they will be able to care for their patients and not get burned out.
ReplyDeleteHeath care providers must be able to take a stand, as the physician to decide what is best for the patient. The physicians can become attached to the patients as they stand beside them as they struggle through their illness. However, the physician must know when nothing else can be done and when they must help the patient comfortably get through the remainder of their lives.
ReplyDeletePhysicians can become overwhelmed and develop burnout and compassion fatigue. This can lead to the physician rejecting the patient or them not being able to make the best decision for the patient care. This occurs more frequently with physicians working with the terminally ill who have a poor outcome.
Research has been done that says if physicians can meditate and concentrate on their inner selves to improve themselves it will better the patients. Physicians who are able to put the emotions aside in order to make the best care plan for the patient seem to have the best way of making the patient comfortable when delivering the news that the end is near.
I believe that dragging out long procedures and tests that will no longer benefit the patient are more harmful then letting them know the end is near. It cannot be easy to tell a person that they will soon die. But I think the patient would be most comfortable with a physician who is confident and willing to tell the whole truth.
I can definitely see how health care workers get stressed and burnt out especially those that work in specialties that cause them to see terminally ill patients. It would be stressful I imagine that a doctor can't do anything to help a patient almost like they failed. Health care workers although need to recognize when they are stressed and burnt out because they are of no help when they are frazzled and cannot think critically and clearly. I think this article is good because someone has noticed that doctors work hard and can get burnt out and that they are doing something to help them. More doctors need to do something whether meditation running or reading whatever it is they need to do to wind down at the end of the day.
ReplyDelete