Found this through Yahoo News

...Many residency programs have support groups where young doctors can discuss their concerns, lead study author Dr. Anna Reisman noted in an interview. However, the process of writing a narrative may help residents examine their experiences in a more thoughtful way, according to Reisman, an assistant professor of internal medicine at the Yale School of Medicine

Focusing on the craft of writing, in other words, provides a means of increasing one's powers of observation and improving one's understanding of ...both self and others," she and her colleagues write in the Journal of General of Internal Medicine...

and

...In focus groups held after the workshop, residents said that writing helped them process their own emotions and better understand those of their patients. Their stories' themes included their own insecurity and feelings of powerlessness, breaking bad news, burnout and awareness of "how little physicians know their patients."...


http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061020/...E0BHNlYwN0bWE-

Hi Carly,

Thanks for posting the site for everyone. I saw this this morning and commented "how little physicians know their patients". AND, in another article I read recently, doctors tend to forget more what females tell them than males. I am thinking about joining that writing class "a view from the other side".

Enjoy, a beautiful fall week-end, Carly.

Hugs, Lisa

I once had a friend of mine who is a nurse tell me that if doctors would LISTEN to their patients more- and exactly what the symptoms were that these patients were telling them- that the patient would basically diagnose him/herself- not literally, but you know what I'm saying. And how many of us have been told that, "there's nothing wrong with you or your *________" (*fill in the blank). Other than the years long fight to find out why my arms were so weak, my left hand was clumsy,etc. my worst issue that I had to fight drs. over was my gallbladder- they kept telling me that their tests told them that there was NOTHING wrong with it.....After I went to one surgeon's office in so much pain I was begging him to take it out, he reluctantly agreed to remove it and what do you know- it was diseased....

and you do not want to get me started. I received an e-mail from a female doctor friend telling me about a woman going to the ER room in Illinois with chest pains and SOB and nausea. Classic symptoms for women and Heart Disease. They brushed her aside and told her to wait her turn. YOU NEVER TELL A PATIENT THIS with CHEST PAINS!!! When they went to get her after 2 hours, she was dead, sitting in a chair, in the ER waiting room. Autopsy indicated a massive heart attack.

I thanked the Coroner for his decision, in court, charging the hospital with negligent Homicide. I praised his decision. I hope every ER room in the country heard about this. Women are the ones that are least taken serious. If this should happen to you, don't sit there and wait your turn, get the head nurse ASAP and demand a Cardiac work up or find the ER doctor and get help.

Ok....unpluging my loud speaker for now.

As a nurse I am WHOLE HEARTEDLEY backing this up (my sp sucks guys! ) I wish all doc's knew how to listen!!! Here here to this statement!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

love V