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As medical students, I believe that most of us have had a fair share of witnessing death in various encounters throughout the course of our studies.
Death does not only mean seeing someone pass away in the hospital during practicals or having experiences with cadavers in Anatomy and Autopsy classes.
I can still remember our first Anatomy class when the lecturer advised us to be respectful to the cadavers and specimens we would encounter throughout our studies. The first thing that caught our attention upon entering the Anatomy Department was a “No Camera” sign. It occurred to me that even though the cadavers are actually deceased people, they deserve as much, if not more respect than any living soul. From then on, I started to develop more respect towards the deceased which explains why it baffles me whenever I see medical students post photographs of cadavers. I am in no position and do not mean to judge anyone but I cannot help but to feel sorry and puzzled by these actions.
The purpose of this article is to talk about the behaviour of medical students towards life and death. Perhaps medicine is one of those courses that gives students the most exposure to life and death. However, are we preparing ourselves well enough to overcome and control our emotions and reactions? It may not come as a surprise to us at this point of time. As time goes by, most of us have learnt to adapt to this matter. The little voice inside you that says, “No, it’s not a big matter. It wouldn’t affect my grades anyway, why should it make a difference?’
Truth be told, every single thing that we encounter in medical school influences our characters. In the battle of winning that precious medical degree, what do we have to sacrifice? Our feelings and the way we treat others, have these things changed? No? Think again. Are we respectful to the anatomical specimens that we borrow for hours at a time from the Anatomy Department? Are we being grateful to the patients who kindly agree to give up their privacy just so we can practice our palpation or percussion skills on them? Did we thank them before moving on to the next patient? Do we even care if they are feeling better? Are we so robotic to the extent where everything seems routine to us? Take a moment to relax and appreciate your environment.
When it comes to encountering death, I can say that I experience it every Wednesday when we learn Pathology and of course it includes the autopsy class. Our faculty is located near the University Hospital which provides us ample opportunities to dissect dead bodies for post-mortem examination. Our lecturer who also happens to be the pathologist in charge of autopsies guides us during these sessions. The first thing the pathologist does every time before proceeding with the necessary procedures, is to cover up the face. Not his face but the deceased’s face. It is most probably a sign of respect as not to publicly display the deceased’s face. Personally, I felt that it was bad enough to start the morning with a post-mortem class and it made me sad to see my lecturer’s facial expressions or lack of expressions so to say. He normally did not seem to show any emotions whatsoever and it may be due to the long term exposure or experiences he has had with cadavers as it is part of his daily routine. It was not until several weeks into the course that my classmates and I noticed the changes in ourselves. We no longer felt the need to throw up or to excuse ourselves from the class every time a cadaver was brought in. In fact, we are more interested in examining the body as soon as we got into the post-mortem room.
This tells us just how much death influences the people who experience it on a daily basis, which also includes us, medical students. The class goes on and without us noticing it, we begin to treat the deceased as just another dead body. This is most probably why many people label doctors as emotionless robots with no capabilities of expressing emotions.
I agree that it is important for a doctor to be calm in order to perform his duties to the best of his or her capabilites. This is the reason why many of them detach themselves from any emotions or feelings. However, in my humble opinion, a physician’s attitude can affect the patient in many ways. I believe that a physician has to be empathic and positive but also realistic at the same time. Every experience that we encounter in medical school will affect the way we handle our career life in the future. If we cannot even treat the deceased with respect while we are still in medical school, how will we treat our patients as doctors in the future? As the saying goes, if you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters. I often ask myself about what type of doctor I will evolve into when I graduate. Will I be able to make the patient feels secure or comfortable enough with me? Will I be able to perform my job without harming the patient? Will I be able to treat the patient with compassion, kindness and also be professional at the same time? These questions can’t help but run through my mind every now and then.
We occupy ourselves with studies most of the time but we forget to thank the people who have contributed their bodies towards the advancement of medical field. We forget to learn how to feel empathy for the sick and we forget to learn how to communicate effectively with the patients. Before we know it, the moment we start to immerse ourselves in career life, we lose our compassion and motivation. Our career becomes an occupational stress and a patient is just another sick person waiting to be examined. In my opinion, the biggest trap during the years we spend in medical school is losing ourselves. The excited and passionate first year is no longer there by the time he or she graduates medical school. Ask yourself from time to time, what kind of doctor do you aspire to be in the future and write the answers down in a diary or a book. You might find the answers to be quite surprising when you flip back through the pages a few years later. So, slow down and take time to reflect on yourself. Think about the life experiences that have helped mould who you are today. Don’t let the packed schedule you have in medical school prevent you from being grateful of the little things you encounter in life each day. Remember that every person you see today could end up being in the post-mortem room. If you cannot treat the deceased well, how will you treat the living ?
“Being brilliant is no great feat if you respect nothing.”
-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Farahliza Grace is a 3rd year medical student studying in the Faculty of Medicine, Palacky University, Czech Republic. Learn more about her and other students at the Young Columnists tab under The Team.