Publication
Article
Psychiatric Times
Medical Education...
Author(s):
Key Takeaways
- Medical education often lacks practical skills essential for patient care, such as delivering bad news and prioritizing patient comfort.
- Real-world experiences with patients provide crucial lessons that complement formal education, enhancing effective medical practice.
"What they taught in school was not what we needed, and what we needed (they said) could not be conveyed."
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What they taught
in school was not
what we needed,
and what we needed
(they said)
could not be conveyed.
So we struck out
on our own
and learned
from our patients
the lessons we needed
to know:
how to break
bad news,
place our own comfort last,
and say nothing
when nothing
more could be said.
And we returned
what they taught
to others
who learned
what we knew
was almost enough.
Dr Berlin has been writing a poem about his experience of being a doctor every month for the past 27 years in Psychiatric Times in a column called “Poetry of the Times.” He is an instructor in psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts. His latest book is Tender Fences.
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