The mother looks harmless isn't she? Just look at the child's face... |
As I was doing ward round on one fateful morning, I came
across a baby who was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, a movement disorder caused
by the damage to the brain during its developmental stages.
She was 9 months old and I thought the lady luck was smiling
at me because her case was so interesting and it is one of the cases that are likely to come out in the
exam.
As such, the temptation of putting your skill into practice
on this baby was unbearable.
“Assalamualaikum,
Mak Cik. Can I examine your baby?” I politely asked for consent.
The mother looked a bit shocked and confused, with her eyes
cautiously looking for any sign of danger.
I try to use the it-will-bring-benefit-to-my-studies excuse.
But, still it didn’t break the silence.
Usually, whenever I want to examine a child there will be no
problem in getting the mother to give her consent.
But, in her case it was different. The mother seems to be
quite reluctant in allowing her daughter to be a sort of guinea pig under the
hands of a medical rookie.
It was a bit frustrating.
Sometimes, that’s one of the challenges that we, medical
students, have to face every day. Not just in the pediatric ward but also in medical or surgical wards.
You just have to get consent from your patient no matter for what reason.
The fact is, without consent you are risking your future
career as a doctor because if something wrong happened, there are lawyers out
there who are more than happy to lead you to the court’s door.
Some patients are very easy in term of getting their
consent. The moment they see you wandering around in the ward looking for a ‘victim’ they
will call you while, at the same time, stripping their shirt off for you to
examine (metaphorically).
But some patients are at the other extreme end of the
spectrum. The moment they see you entering the ward they will immediately close
their eyes pretending to be asleep.
Yes, even though you know that they are acting it out, never
ever test your luck. Actually, you can tease them but, better spare yourself
from any trouble.
Nevertheless asking for consent characterizes the uniqueness
of a doctor-patient relationship. It symbolizes the respect that the doctor has
towards his or her patient. It also shows that he or she has no other
business encroaching into one’s private life (or body parts) except for looking
for clues that may help that person getting better or, in my case, to
learn.
Therefore, once the precious consent is given and the
patient is willing to put his or her trust on you, the next thing to do is to
keep that trust.
Alhamdulillah…after very much persuasion and a long pause, I
managed to get consent from the mother, albeit half-heartedly.
“Excuse me, but what are you doing with my daughter?” Asked
the nervous mother as I started holding her baby up.
“Err…I’m holding her up to see whether she can bear weight
or not” I explained to the mother as I slowly put the pressure on the baby’s
leg using her own body weight.
“For what…”
“I’m just curious to know whether her condition affects her
ability to stand or not.”
“Are you a doctor?”
“Nope. I’m just a medical student…”
Her eyes suddenly turned rage. I could see the shocking
stare coming out from her face. She didn’t blink even for a moment.
Sensing that something was not right, I quickly put her baby
back lying in the cot.
After saying thank you, I took a few steps back and quickly
disappeared into thin air. I just pray that my embarrassing experience won’t
become a news item among the nursing staff on the following day.
“Did she know that I’m a medical student?” I asked myself
while reflecting on the event that had transpired.
She should know because I’m pretty sure that I have my student
ID tag on my white coat. But…
“Did I tell her
that I’m a medical student before asking for consent?”…………………………………
4 comments:
lol..
i think it helps if you say,
I'm a student doctor
Agree...
Will try it out next time
:-)
baru first time baca in full *teringat asking abang, "why do u used medical rookie"*... =). Next time used the suggested term, " I am a student doctor" together with ur comforting and convincing smile ^_^
Will do, honey ^_^ (InsyaAllah)
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