complications a surgeon's notes on an imperfect science review

If something goes wrong in such cases, one should not hold the doctor responsible for the unfortunate consequences.Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science - book reviewĬomplications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science That it should be left to the patient is a good idea in theory, but in many cases, the patient is not inclined to make the decision and requests the doctor to decide what is best for him. Medical decision making is an important ethical issue between the patient and the doctor. When one is suffering, he is at the weakest state of his mind and the lowest ebb of his spirits and the doctors take the calculated decisions about the portion of information that is to be shared with the patient, and the portion to be withheld.īoth types of decisions are in the best interest of the concerned patient. So learning is hidden, behind drapes and anaesthesia and the elisions of language.'(p.24) Truth-telling is the core of the medical profession and if the doctor takes the decision to hide the truth from the patient and his associates, it must be for a very strong ethical reason. Yet everyone is harmed if no one is trained for the future. By traditional ethics and public insistence (not to mention court rulings), a patients right to the best care possible must trump the objective of training novices. Gawande identifies something beyond the moral dilemma of teaching medicine to new learners and writes “This is the uncomfortable truth about teaching. A lie told has to be remembered all the times, but truth has no such problems. ” (p.61)Such a doctor lacks loyalty to the professional ethical principles. As a result, they learn nothing from their mistakes and know nothing of their limitations. They have no questions and no fears about their abilities. Atul Gawande (2003) writes “There are surgeons who will see faults everywhere except in themselves. A confident doctor does not hesitate to tell the truth. Knowledge gained at the medical college, knowledge gained in the practical field in real-life situations in dealing with the patients and above all the self-confidence of the doctor to put into practice his latent skill.

Medical knowledge consists of three issues.

Complications a surgeon's notes on an imperfect science review