Like everyone, I had previously been of the impression that doctors should be kind and caring, feeling the patient's pain, etc., but now it seems to me that there is almost an inverse relationship between kindness and efficiency when it comes to treating seriously ill patients, if that isn't being too unfair to those within the medical field. When I read the case reports I work on I am always struck at how sick some people are, how difficult or endangered their lives are and may always have been, and I think it takes a certain type of individual to push all of that to one side and focus on what matters right now - making the patient well or as well as is possible. Sympathy is over-rated in this context and is probably implied without needing to become overt; what is essential is correct assessment of the situation and the technique to execute what has to be done for the good of the patient. This can involve tough decisions and is a huge demand on another human being: doctors need to be able to shelve their own humanity temporarily as emotionality is not helpful and could actually be detrimental to the outcome. I sometimes wonder whether medics are born this way, and consequently, only certain personality types have the necessary attributes to navigate the training process, or if they learn to become what the job demands; I also wonder what impact this has on their personal lives and what supports are available to them, if any. When I read about some of the procedures that are carried out by men and women to save other human beings, when the life of another person is in their hands, I cannot help but be filled with admiration. Surgeons and emergency medics in particular need to possess nerves of steel and have absolutely no doubt in their own ability to carry out the job in front of them - there is no room for hesitation or anxiety or lack of confidence. It's a lot to place on another person. I now feel I have a greater understanding of the profession and why 'niceness' may not necessarily be the best quality in a medical doctor - when the human body goes wrong extreme measures can be needed to save the patient; quick-thinking and technical excellence are what will make the difference, rather than hand-holding, horrible as that sounds. However! Saying all of that, there obviously needs to be a balance as human beings are not machines and there is an irrefutable mind-body-soul inter-relationship that can confound medicine and physicality - the feelings and attitude of the patient can be even more important in determining a good outcome than physiological status, particularly when an illness is long-term. It's an interesting concept and one that we don't really embrace in the West; we tend to emphasize the quantifiable and not necessarily pay too much attention to holistic approaches.
This is all swirling away in my mind when I'm editing my case reports - I have no idea how many of these I've worked on by now but I still feel huge appreciation for medical practitioners and acknowledge the heroic role played by patients and their families, in allowing their lives to be publicly documented in this way for the benefit of those who may be in a similar situation at some point. It feels far more altruistic than other types of academic publishing; it takes a lot of time and effort to put these reports together and they serve to underpin the entire medical literature, with the authors receiving little in the way of recognition or kudos. It makes me happy to be doing my bit, while learning so much more about the human body and its manifold complexity. Medical editing in itself is definitely a self-contained discipline; there is a LOT of terminology to check and it takes some time to understand that although some phrases or names may not be 'book-correct' they are entirely acceptable within the field and do not require my intervention. As a by-product of this work, I now have a rudimentary pseudo-knowledge of many different areas of medicine which I use to great effect in various discussions/arguments with family members (it's true what they say; a little knowledge is a dangerous thing) and I feel like I've been given a wonderful insight into this hitherto mysterious, impenetrable world.