How can the frequent conflicts between the government and health workers, especially doctors, be addressed?
The solution lies in workers being committed to their jobs rather than being propelled by pecuniary gains, says Lagos State Commissioner for Health Dr Jide Idris. He was delivering a lecture at the 16th Lagos State University College of Medicine (LASUCOM) Founders Day with the theme, Restoring and promoting professionalism in medical practice.
Idris said doctors and stakeholders must be propelled from the standpoint of, “our responsibilities to our patients/clients and even the society at large in finding solutions to overcoming these challenges. New approaches requiring thinking out of the box and better mastering of the political resolution of such conflicts should be embraced”.
Quoting a Canadian physician and one of the four founding professors of Johns Hopkins Hospital, Sir William Osler, Idris said: “You are in this profession as a calling, not as a business, as a calling which exacts from you at every turn self-sacrifice, devotion, love and tenderness to your fellow men. Once you get down to a purely business level, your influence is gone and the true light of your life is dimmed. You must work in the missionary spirit, with a breadth of charity that raises you far above the petty jealousies of life.”
Professionalism, according to Idris, must not be compromised because, “professionalism is an important component of medicine’s contract with society”.
“Not only do we need to make good decisions for our patients based on the evidence in the literature, but we also need to apply those decisions in a way that is professional and ultimately helps our patient. Certain behaviours early in medical education do correlate with unprofessional behaviours during a physician’s career. We need to be vigilant in looking for those behaviours and let our students and trainees know why we are so concerned about them. Physicians are likely to improve in professionalism with training and experience,” he said.
He added: “Professionalism is widely accepted as a central element of healthcare, but it is a complex and multifaceted concept that is often difficult to define or even measure. Consequently, it is frequently described in terms of its absence and negative values, behaviours and relationships that are demonstrated when things have gone wrong.
“The emphasis should therefore, shift to reinforcing the positive and professional behaviours that are expected of staff and to articulate how they can be motivated and supported to enact the quality agenda.”
Idris urged tutors to harp on professional ethics to sustain the allure of medical practice. “A comprehensive discussion of professionalism in medicine must include its impact on successive generations of physicians. Fifty years ago, doctors acting professionally emphasised medicine as a calling and an ability to act as the authority for patients in crisis at home and in hospitals.
“Therapeutic options were limited relatively to modern era, and the laying on of hands was practiced as science and art. Today, doctors balance increasing demands on time and efficiency with the sense of primacy of patient care. Technological innovation and patients’ increasing access to medical knowledge through varying media of inconsistent quality challenge physicians in novel ways,” he said.
Idris added:“Fifty years in the future, doctors will have access to vast amount of information through a multitude of non-invasive diagnostics. Progressively more personalised medicine should inspire doctors to become more adept at communicating effectively with patients. Professionalism in medicine through these generations embodies similar fundamental behaviours, such as demonstrating compassion, respect and humility; adhering to high ethical and moral standards; subordinating personal interest to that of others and reflecting on actions and decisions.”
“Despite the dynamic nature of medicine itself,” Idris explained, “the omnipresent need for such traits will define medical professionalism for decades to come. The need to balance the advancement of medicine with societal need and a sense of accountability will be even more important, as the unprecedented wealth of medical, pharmaceutical and technological options will demand the vigilance of physicians in every aspect of their practice.
“As our tools help us treat disease as never before, we will require more confidence in our knowledge and abilities to interprete vast amount of data and to connect with our patients beyond the machines, the pills and the lab tests. As practitioners, we must prevent doctor-patient interactions from becoming sterile, mechanical, technology-driven processes.”
In attendance, were Head of Department, Community and Primary Health, Dr Kikelomo Wright; Dean FBMS, Dr Femi Amole; Dean FCS, Dr Abiodun Adewuya; former Provost, Prof. Olumuyiwa Odusanya; the Provost, Prof. G.O.G Awosanya; Dean FD, Prof Ademola Olaitan; Chairman Lagos State Univeristy Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) Board, Dr Williams; Deputy Provost LASUCOM, Prof. Wole Adedeji; former Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) Chief Medical Director (CMD), Prof Akin Osibogun and Medical Elder, Dr Ore Falomo.
