PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT MAKES YOU A “GOOD DOCTOR”

HUMOR ME and answer the following question in the space provided: What does being a doctor mean to you? (It’s OK to write in the magazine — it’s your copy.)

You might answer with things, such as title, prestige and money, or maybe the responsibility of helping people and contributing to their stories. Maybe it is intrigue by how the eyes work or how drugs, lifestyle choices and the environment affect the body.

You might answer that it means the excitement of studying biology and other sciences, or the challenge of passing the rigorous exams and actually surviving to become an optometric physician! Maybe it is the high-tech environment. It might be the ability to improve the lives of those people who entrust their care to you.

You may have tongue-in-cheek answered, “to endure long hours, a crazy workload, managed care, high patient expectations, less than optimal patient outcomes and the stress of trying to maintain the life-work balance.” Maybe it is the daily challenges of the paperwork and EHR or the constant feeling that you will never get it done, and you are never doing enough for your patients, your staff and your family, much less yourself.

OUR REWARDING PROFESSION

Despite your answer, positive or tongue-in-cheek, we have a great profession full of challenge and reward and will continue to attract some really great people. If they love science, psychology, economics and technology, they will be happy and provide the opportunity to truly make a difference in people’s lives. This future will not be without continued challenges. Online competition, virtual services, technology changes and an uncertain political direction are just a few of the forthcoming challenges we will face.

To compete, we will need to take a different approach. We will need to continue to get comfortable with actively delegating to staff. We will need to use technology and interact with all other health care professionals to help our patients. We will need to find alternative ways to compete for the retail side of our businesses.

MORE THAN SCIENCE

In the end, remember it is how we make them feel that is ultimately more important than what we actually do for them. Sometimes, medicine is more than just science, numbers and prescriptions. And though I shout the triumphs of modern technology and always harp about how we need to improve quality outcomes, the humanistic side of what we do is still the most important. It is the relationship that we build with our patients.

For some, this statement is a blessing because they already focus on the personal side every day, while for others, this column is a warning shot to pay attention to what makes you a “Good Doctor.” Patient care is about evidence-based medicine, but it may be more about the unmeasurable in the long run. Call it trust, the ability to listen attentively, a feeling or a good chairside manner — call it whatever you want — but it is what will separate you from everyone else or any device that says, “Which is better, one or two?” It is pretty much that simple! OM.