29 Over confidence leads to disaster

The mule, the rooster, and the lion: A mule and a rooster lived in a farmyard. A lion sneaked in and was about to pounce on the ass, when the rooster, realising the danger, rose to its full height, flapped its wings and crowed lustily. The lion was scared by all the racket made by the rooster and beat a hasty retreat. The mule was pleased to see the fleeing lion and thought, "If a small rooster can scare him away, I can chase him too.” He pursued the lion to the fringes of the jungle when the lion suddenly turned around, pounced on the mule and devoured him.

Dr Prakash was a brash young surgeon who was rearing to start independent practice. "Don't be an ass," advised his teacher, "you are not ready yet. You are protected here so well that you don't even realise the dangers of independent practice.” But Dr Prakash replied, "Sir, in the past two months, you have just stood and watched me do everything. Not once did I need any help from you."

He left the institute and started his private practice. As ill luck would have it, the first 'acute abdomen' he opened was a problematic case. The patient died and Dr Prakash was charged with manslaughter by the relatives.

Comments

Many young enthusiastic health professionals suffer from the 'almighty syndrome'. With the newly gained scientific information and skills they are ready to take on the world. However, converting mere information into useful knowledge takes time. Gaining insight and wisdom by repeatedly applying one's knowledge takes even longer. Similarly,

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gaining mastery over skilled procedures takes time and practice.

Health care seekers should learn to spot the signs of over confidence in a professional. Such a personality -

 talks in absolutes like never, always, absolutely, etc.  is brash and over-optimistic in 'pushing' of procedures.  bypasses or smooth-talks on queries about risks involved.  is unidimensional, i.e., unable to discuss pros and cons of a complex case in a holistic way. (Scully T, 1987)

Young professionals should be proactive in outcome and impact analysis. Modern miracles in health care are as potent as they are double edged. The potential risks and adverse outcome should be explained to the patient or a responsible relative (see Chapter 1). With facilities like the internet and tele-conferencing, novices should take help from their teachers and seniors. As the cliché goes, it is better to be safe than sorry.

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