Takeaway
My approach to care is to provide the kind of care you would want for yourself and your family.
Passion in the Medical Profession | October 15, 2018 | 1 min read
By Andrea Corse, MD, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
My approach to care is to provide the kind of care you would want for yourself and your family. Thus, main elements of my care are respect, empathy, professionalism, knowledge, and communication. The totality of this approach is a dynamic culmination of my experiences and is continually being refined.
Growing up in Kansas City, my only exposure to medicine was my pediatrician, Dr. R. Blim, who, I learned years later, was the President of the American Academy of Pediatrics during the years when I was his patient. Dr. Blim appeared very professional in his white coat. He had all the answers, a warm smile, and all the time in the world for me and my siblings. I have been fortunate to continue to have exemplary role models through my education, training, and faculty practice that enhance my approach to patient care to this day.
Observing my neurology and other colleagues, I witnessed encyclopedic expertise from which new treatments, cures, and even recognition of new diseases unfolded. I saw the power of empathy and gained an understanding that epidemiology doesn’t pertain to an individual, valuable lessons that provided me and my patients, many with ALS, an empowering strategy to face disease. To enhance diagnostic acumen I quickly learned, “the devil is in the details,” with patient encounters, and clarity of communication is key.
I am frequently reminded what a unique privilege it is to continue to learn and teach and provide the best patient care I can.