What makes a good healthcare professional?

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Mr. Felipe Mazaro Matheus, born in 1992, a biomedical and fourth year medical student at Unicesumar in Maringá (Brazil). He is affiliated to the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the topic, nor The European Sting’s one.

---

It is well known that health care and professional’s view of the patient change over time. As this evolution occurs, debates such as ‘What makes a good healthcare professional?’ Are more frequent. But after all, a good professional should have what skills and how to behave when facing the different scenarios of health care, difficulties of patients and their profession? Above all, respect and concern for the patient should be the most important qualities of a healthcare professional. One must know how to deal with anguish, pain and frailty in an individualized manner. It is essential to remember that the patient to be treated is not just a disease, but a human being with emotions, immersed in peculiar social and cultural spheres.. Equally, professional-patient communication becomes essential and differentiates average from good and great professionals. Clearly, no patient is the same as another, so communication should not be the same for everyone. The professional should not always be brief in their information, some patients, for example, do not follow many treatments precisely because they do not understand what is happening to them and do not know how to take prescription drugs. A good professional always needs to practice communication skills, developing fluidity and eloquence for all patients to understand, as well as knowing how to articulate according to the environmental situation imposed on it. Likewise, another feature of great importance to a good professional is always updating. Patients with a few clicks on the Internet now have enough information to suggest treatment and even some diagnosis. Congresses, workshops, scientific studies and specializations are some ways to gain knowledge and show the patient complete mastery of what is being done. It is noteworthy that general skills such as dedication, responsibility, efficiency, humility are equally important to highlight good professionals. In short, a good healthcare professional needs to have certain skills and attitudes that qualify him or her for any given time in the face of difficulties encountered in the profession. Likewise, it is also important for the humanized treatment practice that patients so need. About the author Felipe Mazaro Matheus, born in 1992, is a biomedical and fourth year medical student at Unicesumar in Maringá (Brazil). He is a lover of physiology and defender of human rights. Bárbara Okabaiasse Luizeti is 20 years old and a third-year medical student. She is working as Vice President of the Miguel Nicolelis Academic Center, LPR-D (Local Officer on Publications and Research Director) and Director of the Nucleus of Scientific Research at IFMSA Brazil UniCesumar. She has always been dedicated to helping vulnerable populations from extracurricular projects, and disseminating health information to lay people and academics.