This summer we toured Israel/Palestine, with the majority of the time spent in the West Bank, much of it in Ramallah, centered on doing volunteer work at the Ramallah Friends School. Ramallah is a wonderful city! A senior member of our group described it as the friendliest city he had ever been in; the rest of the group agreed wholeheartedly. People, especially children, would come up to us on the street, extraordinarily well mannered, introduce themselves, ask about us, and welcome us to their city.
Our volunteer project was to repaint doors, railings, and wrought iron window grills at the Ramallah Friends School, a Quaker school that opened in the 1800s to provide educational opportunities to girls. The school now serves girls and boys, from kindergarten to high school, both Muslims and Christians. Many of the graduates are highly accomplished; many have moved to the United States.
Without ladders, painting the second story iron window grills proved difficult. Painting the areas we could see was easy. The biggest challenge was to paint the side of the grill facing outward and not miss any nooks and crannies that would be seen by people on the street below. Having another person as a spotter on the ground to give feedback to the painter helped us overcome the hurdle.
This relationship struck us as a metaphor about communication and perspective that seemed apropos to both medicine and the region in which we were volunteering. The person holding the paintbrush has a good view of one side of the project and is almost blind to the perspective on the other side. Accepting and incorporating the perspective of someone who sees things from the other side facilitates the work.
To know the perspective of other people is critically important in interpersonal relationships. To be able to accurately imagine other people’s perspectives is a great skill, if not a great gift. Another way to determine their perspective is simply to ask their opinion. Understanding the way our patients perceive us and the care we offer can help us give patients a better medical experience.
Just one example of this is in the prescription of common topical corticosteroids. We know these drugs well, including how effective and safe they are, how they work, exactly how to use them, and what to expect. When we write the prescription, it is hard to perceive how in the dark patients feel about the medication. If we were to fully internalize their perception, we would provide detailed information about the medication. Too often, we leave patients unaware of truly basic information about treatment and how to use it.1 We can do better.
Steven R. Feldman, MD, PhD
Chief Medical Editor
Ms Claggett is with Guilford College in Greensboro, NC.
Dr Feldman is with the Center for Dermatology Research and the Departments of Dermatology, Pathology, and Public Health Sciences at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, NC.
Reference
Storm A, Benfeldt E, Andersen SE, Andersen J. Basic drug information given by physicians is deficient, and patients’ knowledge low. J Dermatolog Treat. 2009;20(4):190-193.
This summer we toured Israel/Palestine, with the majority of the time spent in the West Bank, much of it in Ramallah, centered on doing volunteer work at the Ramallah Friends School. Ramallah is a wonderful city! A senior member of our group described it as the friendliest city he had ever been in; the rest of the group agreed wholeheartedly. People, especially children, would come up to us on the street, extraordinarily well mannered, introduce themselves, ask about us, and welcome us to their city.
Our volunteer project was to repaint doors, railings, and wrought iron window grills at the Ramallah Friends School, a Quaker school that opened in the 1800s to provide educational opportunities to girls. The school now serves girls and boys, from kindergarten to high school, both Muslims and Christians. Many of the graduates are highly accomplished; many have moved to the United States.
Without ladders, painting the second story iron window grills proved difficult. Painting the areas we could see was easy. The biggest challenge was to paint the side of the grill facing outward and not miss any nooks and crannies that would be seen by people on the street below. Having another person as a spotter on the ground to give feedback to the painter helped us overcome the hurdle.
This relationship struck us as a metaphor about communication and perspective that seemed apropos to both medicine and the region in which we were volunteering. The person holding the paintbrush has a good view of one side of the project and is almost blind to the perspective on the other side. Accepting and incorporating the perspective of someone who sees things from the other side facilitates the work.
To know the perspective of other people is critically important in interpersonal relationships. To be able to accurately imagine other people’s perspectives is a great skill, if not a great gift. Another way to determine their perspective is simply to ask their opinion. Understanding the way our patients perceive us and the care we offer can help us give patients a better medical experience.
Just one example of this is in the prescription of common topical corticosteroids. We know these drugs well, including how effective and safe they are, how they work, exactly how to use them, and what to expect. When we write the prescription, it is hard to perceive how in the dark patients feel about the medication. If we were to fully internalize their perception, we would provide detailed information about the medication. Too often, we leave patients unaware of truly basic information about treatment and how to use it.1 We can do better.
Steven R. Feldman, MD, PhD
Chief Medical Editor
Ms Claggett is with Guilford College in Greensboro, NC.
Dr Feldman is with the Center for Dermatology Research and the Departments of Dermatology, Pathology, and Public Health Sciences at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, NC.
Reference
Storm A, Benfeldt E, Andersen SE, Andersen J. Basic drug information given by physicians is deficient, and patients’ knowledge low. J Dermatolog Treat. 2009;20(4):190-193.
This summer we toured Israel/Palestine, with the majority of the time spent in the West Bank, much of it in Ramallah, centered on doing volunteer work at the Ramallah Friends School. Ramallah is a wonderful city! A senior member of our group described it as the friendliest city he had ever been in; the rest of the group agreed wholeheartedly. People, especially children, would come up to us on the street, extraordinarily well mannered, introduce themselves, ask about us, and welcome us to their city.
Our volunteer project was to repaint doors, railings, and wrought iron window grills at the Ramallah Friends School, a Quaker school that opened in the 1800s to provide educational opportunities to girls. The school now serves girls and boys, from kindergarten to high school, both Muslims and Christians. Many of the graduates are highly accomplished; many have moved to the United States.
Without ladders, painting the second story iron window grills proved difficult. Painting the areas we could see was easy. The biggest challenge was to paint the side of the grill facing outward and not miss any nooks and crannies that would be seen by people on the street below. Having another person as a spotter on the ground to give feedback to the painter helped us overcome the hurdle.
This relationship struck us as a metaphor about communication and perspective that seemed apropos to both medicine and the region in which we were volunteering. The person holding the paintbrush has a good view of one side of the project and is almost blind to the perspective on the other side. Accepting and incorporating the perspective of someone who sees things from the other side facilitates the work.
To know the perspective of other people is critically important in interpersonal relationships. To be able to accurately imagine other people’s perspectives is a great skill, if not a great gift. Another way to determine their perspective is simply to ask their opinion. Understanding the way our patients perceive us and the care we offer can help us give patients a better medical experience.
Just one example of this is in the prescription of common topical corticosteroids. We know these drugs well, including how effective and safe they are, how they work, exactly how to use them, and what to expect. When we write the prescription, it is hard to perceive how in the dark patients feel about the medication. If we were to fully internalize their perception, we would provide detailed information about the medication. Too often, we leave patients unaware of truly basic information about treatment and how to use it.1 We can do better.
Steven R. Feldman, MD, PhD
Chief Medical Editor
Ms Claggett is with Guilford College in Greensboro, NC.
Dr Feldman is with the Center for Dermatology Research and the Departments of Dermatology, Pathology, and Public Health Sciences at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, NC.
Reference
Storm A, Benfeldt E, Andersen SE, Andersen J. Basic drug information given by physicians is deficient, and patients’ knowledge low. J Dermatolog Treat. 2009;20(4):190-193.
