But there is a detail, his Cecal appendix was already removed about 10 years before (according to the data provided by the patient). The surgeon, a person with great experience, decided to operate. He found a very inflamed appendix, removed it without difficulty, found no prior local surgery traces. Since the appendix “does not riber”, this patient was made an incision in the skin of his right iliac fossa, only in the skin.
In all three cases, the doctor who violates the elementary rules of honesty and humanism, seem to have in common the inability to develop empathy; which is closely linked to ethical behavior. There are solid evidence that both are processed in the prefrontal cortex (3). The examples seek to support M. Hojat’s approach that I described at the beginning of the column. If it is assumed that medicine is a professional humanistic practice, it is natural to select subjects and programs that strengthen empathy instead of annihilating it. A question proceeds: is it the responsibility of the School of Medicine to accept as students and give a title to people with reduced empathic capacity? I believe that it is your responsibility as I also believe, from my experience, that it is more productive to educate in compassionate equanimity to students and residents with high empathic levels.
