“When Dr. Yehonatan N. Turner regan his residency in radiology, he was frustrated that the CT scans he analyzed revealed nothing about the patients behind them-only their internal organs” starts the article in yesterday’s New York Times. To get a real feel his work, he began to pretend that each patient was his own father. He soon came up with a better idea. He asked to have a photograph of each patient.
A rather unusual study grew out of this practice and the findings were surprising. When a photo is attached to the patient’s file radiology reports were longer, more meticulous, included more recommendations.
Quoting Dr. Jonathan Halevey “When there is a picture, your attitude and approach changes-the human aspect is inserted.”
What a simple and effective way to practice better medicine and enhance the work lives of radilogists.
