Perception as an instrument of change posted on 2017-09-03
Perception (definition): a way of regarding, understanding, or interpreting something; a mental impression It doesn’t take a scientific study to say that practicing in a model is preferable to learning to perform medical procedures on patient after patient during on-the-job medical training. Yet few national bronchology societies purchase airway models to train their members. Indeed, [Read More]
Feelings are important posted on 2017-08-15
Oscar Wilde wrote that “experience is the name that everyone gives to their mistakes” (Lady Windemere’s Fan, Act III, 1892). Just as we are not expected to become champion tennis players without hours of physical training, coaching, and careful attention to our head game, doctors should not be expected to become competent bronchoscopists simply by [Read More]
Virtual Reality and the future of bronchoscopy education posted on 2017-07-22
The strength of clinical medicine resides in the practitioner’s ability to diagnose, treat, and understand the impact of disease on a patient’s condition. Such practical wisdom, or what Aristotle called phronesis is gained and nurtured at the bedside. It is the scientific understanding of disease and health, Aristotle’s episteme, however, that leads to medicine’s greatest [Read More]
Time to focus on the practical needs of a revolution posted on 2017-07-01
During the last decade I committed myself to a philosophical revolution based on the premise that it is unethical for doctors to learn their procedural skills on other human beings. From New York to New Delhi, and on every continent except Antarctica, I have taught that doctors have alternatives to climbing the learning curve [Read More]
Knowledge is Power posted on 2017-05-17
In 1620, Francis Bacon argued that ‘knowledge is power’. Since the advent of the Internet and the increasing popularity of social media services such as Facebook, Whatsapp, and Twitter, spreading knowledge has never been easier or more instantaneous. Yet the inequalities regarding access to information, technical skills, and medical training resources seem enormous. Inequalities of [Read More]