Revisiting Our Assumptions & Preconceptions

Most importantly, I see great hope in the medical students, resident physicians and fellow physicians with whom I interact. They have an innate awareness of socioeconomic determinants of health and are more attuned to the challenges of communication and customization than their predecessors, including me. I see them volunteering in the community and engaging with the wider world to understand these mental frameworks and reconcile them with evidence-based medicine. I’m truly inspired by their leadership and hope the system doesn’t dull their enthusiasm as they continue on their career trajectories.

Stay Hungry

Since I first passed the billboard, I’ve had a chance to return to that area. I even took a snapshot of the sign to post on my office wall. While I cannot honestly say that I’m a completely changed person, I can say that I’m a little bit humbler. It’s time to revisit assumptions and preconceptions about our patients’ lives.

I’m spending more time talking with patients, not just about their medical issues, but about how their diseases affect the way they look at the world and how their world affects how they look at their diseases. I’m challenging myself to be more precise with words because they are so laden with meanings (like “boost”). I’m reflecting empathically more often and more transparently with patients. And I’m looking at the world more critically to see how I fit.

In other words, I’m doing what the billboard suggests: I’m fueling my hunger.

Bharat Kumar, MD, MME, FACP, FAAAAI, RhMSUS, is the associate program director of the rheumatology fellowship training program at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, and the physician editor of The Rheumatologist. Follow him on Twitter @BharatKumarMD.

References

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