| Popis: |
Nineteen years ago, as I was driving home from a hospital in Phoenix, a talk-radio program was airing on my car radio. The guest was an osteopathic physician and he was taking call-in questions. One caller asked about gallstones and the symptoms that she was experiencing. The osteopath described how he could treat this disease with spinal manipulation, and even “make these gallstones go away.” As a chief resident in general surgery, I was sure this was quackery, and I knew the only way to treat this problem was with a no.10 scalpel blade and a right upper quadrant incision. So I called the radio station and was put on the air. I explained to the osteopathic physician that the therapy he was touting was unscientific, unproven, and dangerous. I challenged him to show me the data that supported his treatment. I then admonished the talk-show host for also promoting this harmful information. The osteopath countered with his anecdotal experiences of how effective his treatments have been, and the host passionately explained how this very physician sitting next to him had helped with his own daughter’s medical problems after conventional medical doctors had failed. The host stated he unconditionally trusted his guest. I hung up, frustrated by my inability to change their minds. This was not the last time I had my medical values challenged. At times it has given me great pause over the years to witness patients and acquaintances questioning my recommendations and advice. After all, I knew I had a great bedside manner (don’t we all?), and that I was backed up by the scientific method. I was taught at Stanford and UCLA. Stellar surgeons in Phoenix like Drs. MacDonald Wood and Harry Hale trained me. My other mentors and role models were outstanding physicians such as Keith Harris, MD, in Phoenix, David Feliciano, MD, in Houston, Carey Page, MD, in San Antonio, and Gene Moore, MD, in Denver. How could my patients not accept advice from a physician with my background? Why would they seek alternative methods that I did not support? I ruminated about alternative medical therapies to try to reconcile the issue. I wondered if I was too rigid in my thinking. Our past-president, Jim Thomas, addressed the “Surgical Personality” in 1997, summarizing one study that ranked surgeons low on the traits of “humbleness, openness to and accepting of others.” In another study, surgeons were described by nonsurgeons as “arrogant, impersonal, and authoritarian.” Was alternative medicine really harmful to my patients or did it take me out of my egocentric comfort zone? One thing my mentors possess is creative thinking. They frequently have new ideas and are not fearful of seeking new approaches to solve problems. This spurred me on. It was time for me to “get out of the box” and find out what alternative medicine was all about. The leadership expert John W. Gardner once said: “Creativity requires the freedom to consider ‘unthinkable’ alternatives, to doubt the worth of cherished practices.” In 1997, the anticipation of presenting this address provided the opportunity for me to explore and get to know the world of alternative medicine. Am J Surg. 2000;180:389–395. From the Breast Care Center of the Southwest, Phoenix, Arizona. Requests for reprints should be addressed to Victor J. Zannis, MD, 2525 West Greenway Road, Suite 130, Phoenix, Arizona 85023. Presented at the 52nd Annual Meeting of the Southwestern Surgical Congress, Colorado Springs, Colorado, April 9–12, 2000. PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS |
Full Text from ScienceDirect