Experience of life
CMAJ 1999;160:1287
The editorial introducing "The Left Atrium" [full text]1 reminded me of one of my most grateful patients. The quotation of Hunter's discussion of the interpretive function of the physician brought to mind a patient whose medical complaint had a nonmedical explanation. A woman in her early 60s presented with the following story:
Patient: "Doctor, I am afraid that I'm going crazy."
Doctor: "Why do you think that?"
Patient: "My car keeps jumping sideways when I am driving down a perfectly straight road."
Doctor: "You're not crazy, you're just driving a Dodge Aspen."
Patient: "How on earth did you know that?"
Doctor: "My wife has one, and it does the same thing."
Patient: "Oh, thank you so much, doctor; that's such a relief!"
At the time I recalled one of Dr. Ian McWhinney's teachings, that one of the requirements of a good physician is to have experience of life. We don't learn it all in medical school. We keep learning all the time.
David Spence, MD
London, Ont.
dspence@rri.on.ca
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Reference
- Todkill AM, Hoey J. Entering "The Left Atrium." CMAJ 1999;160(1):67-8.
