Residency training is an intense time for young doctors. The sheer amount of technical, pharmaceutical and physiology information you are expected to learn is overwhelming. It is not just numbers and equations that weigh heavy, but the interpersonal aspects of the training. The so-called “art of medicine.” Integral to this training is the “giving of bad news.” Some conditions are worse than others, but regardless of what you are about to disclose, telling someone they have a condition that will alter the course of their life, like lupus, is never easy.
In Rheumatology, few of the conditions we treat are temporary. We become such a part of our patient’s lives because their condition requires continued contact over years. Lupus falls squarely in this category and for this reason I have never taken it lightly. Many with lupus are young adults, beginning families and careers. Being told their future will likely not look the way they had imagined is devastating. I certainly haven’t handled every discussion with the grace and compassion it deserved and I have definitely learned along the way the concerns that are most pressing for people when they first learn of their lupus diagnosis.
[Read more…] about What you need to know about Lupus – Pt. 1