What makes a top doctor? Is there a good top bloke test?
Written on January 20, 2010 at 4:57 pm
Maybe brains just ain't enough
The traits of your perfect med student? Extroversion, neuroticism, openness, agreeableness and above all, conscientiousness. So those guys blitzed their medical school exams graduating on top of all the other introverts and um, un-agreeables!! But does being a good med student make you a good doc?
It always amazes me to find who is noted as a ‘good’ doctor by friends and family. The most highly prized traits I’ve noticed include;
- Runs late (always a reliable sign the highly sought after doc is top notch)
- Remembers your vocation and asks polite questions about it (good memory for minutiae is a consistent theme among many prized professionals across a variety of disciplines I’ve decided)
- Tells you your baby is gorgeous (the ultimate hallmark of a TOP paediatrician or obstetrician)
- Tells new parents their son looks exactly like dad (University medalist)
- Gives you antibiotics for your cold when you tell him you need them (smiling while agreeing to be walked over can appear weak to some but not to the most astute patient)
- Tells selected patients their ailment (cold, knee arthritis, sinus disease) is the WORST they’ve seen in their professional career (can land the doctor the jackpot best doctor ever title when played well)
OK have you noticed my tongue is in my cheek?
But let me share with you my version of a top doc; One of my partners in my practice is the local doctor’s doctor. On any given day he will have a patient list including every one of the top specialists at our local tertiary teaching hospital or their wives or children. It’s the ultimate endorsement.
He is smart as anyone I’ve ever met. He’s thorough. But above all he cares about every single person who walks into his room and treats them exactly how he’d want his family treated in the same position. He is respectful of every concern.
Neurotic? No. Extroverted? I guess so but agreeable- or in my words, a TOP bloke, yes you betcha. To me that’s why he is the very best doctor.
Can we put would-be med students through the top bloke test?
