Monday, April 2, 2012

Specialization



            While talking and reading about what makes a “good doctor”, there has been one thing that has somewhat bothered me. That is the often lack of acknowledgement of the vast specialization in the medical field. Yes, there are a set of commonalities between all doctors; but, to me, what make a cardiovascular surgeon a “good doctor” is very different from what makes a family pediatrician a “good doctor”. Good communication skills are much more important for a family pediatrician dealing with children than for a cardiovascular surgeon who spends most of his time with an unconscious patient. The technical skills required to be a good cardiovascular surgeon are almost useless to the everyday routine of a good family pediatrician. Some may be against such specialization in the medical fiend, but I view it in a more positive way. With the vast differences between different medical fields, specialization allow for a doctor to give the very best care in his or her respective field. Patient care is a team sport where different types of doctors all contribute different strengths that make the team that much stronger.

1 comment:

  1. I completely agree with your argument. I believe that a huge emphasis on the personalities of doctors is unnecessary due to the varying degrees of communication and interaction required between doctors, their peers, and their patients depending on the specialty. I believe that doctors should be able to develop communication skills through their clinical experiences, due to the fact that these experiences and the skills necessary to succeed in such situations are vastly different between all of the specialties.

    ReplyDelete