Goaaaalllll
Posted by Way Siong | | Posted On Friday 11 June 2010 at 2:37 am
Responsibility
Posted by Way Siong | | Posted On Thursday 10 June 2010 at 12:57 am
Working in medicine carries a very strong responsibility. We all know that even before beginnning our studies.
Yesterday I had a taste of what decision making in a real clinical setting felt like.
Saw a patient who presents with symptoms of vertigo, did a hallpike manoeuvre which was positive and immediately came about with my diagnosis of BPPV.
Under normal circumstances, I would usually present my findings to a resident or a registrar and then make a decision on clinical management together. That way, I feel safe and well supervised. Most importantly, I feel assured that whatever decision we make is correct in terms of best patient outcomes.
The situation was slightly different for that case yesterday. The resident I presented to didn't know about the Hallpike nor much about the management of BPPV. Based on my convincing presentation that it was BPPV and a short presentation during the ward round, the diagnosis was set and we can safely discharge the patient home.
Everything was fine, I was quite confident of my final diagnosis and the managment plan was safe (we ensured the patient gets followed up by a GP within a week).
I thought nothing of it until last night when I was writing up the case. I felt burdened. What if I was wrong? Did I just send someone home in error? Did I consider all the possible differentials, did I get the history right, did I exclude critical diagnoses?
In another year, this would be routine. I need to buck up to make sure I don't mess up.
Yesterday I had a taste of what decision making in a real clinical setting felt like.
Saw a patient who presents with symptoms of vertigo, did a hallpike manoeuvre which was positive and immediately came about with my diagnosis of BPPV.
Under normal circumstances, I would usually present my findings to a resident or a registrar and then make a decision on clinical management together. That way, I feel safe and well supervised. Most importantly, I feel assured that whatever decision we make is correct in terms of best patient outcomes.
The situation was slightly different for that case yesterday. The resident I presented to didn't know about the Hallpike nor much about the management of BPPV. Based on my convincing presentation that it was BPPV and a short presentation during the ward round, the diagnosis was set and we can safely discharge the patient home.
Everything was fine, I was quite confident of my final diagnosis and the managment plan was safe (we ensured the patient gets followed up by a GP within a week).
I thought nothing of it until last night when I was writing up the case. I felt burdened. What if I was wrong? Did I just send someone home in error? Did I consider all the possible differentials, did I get the history right, did I exclude critical diagnoses?
In another year, this would be routine. I need to buck up to make sure I don't mess up.
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