There is an old Chinese saying “ Give a man a fish and you feed him for one day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime ” From times immemorial, the practice of medicine has been a closely guarded secret. The physician is the “know all” and the patient is the “ ignorant recipient ” who was expected to blindly follow the orders. The medicinal concoctions were a secret. The prescriptions were in Greek or Latin. I strongly feel that being a doctor-patient team and enabling patients is a better method of caring, curing and healing.
I deal with asthma. Asthma is a chronic disease which will stay with the patient. It can be controlled but it can’t be cured. In chronic diseases, if a good outcome is desired, the doctor and the patient have to work as a team. The role of the doctor is more about teaching and less about doctoring. It is about empowering and enabling the patient to…
