Dr.

Kazan
The role of a doctor in todays society is something that is really powerful. The ability to save lives and change the outcome of a sickness really makes these professionals heroes. Although the road along the way is long and pain staking for most the end results are worth it. The interview with Dr. Kazan really shed light on the life of a doctor. It really showed how the Voice of Medicine, socialization, and the physician -patient relationship are really viewed by the people who deal with these concepts the most. Many of the things Dr. Kazan talked about were extremely similar to the Voice of Medicine. The Voice of Medicine is a term that I feel is very common in the medical world and fits very closely with the biomedical approach. Emotional feelings are not really important in this view. Instead their is great importance placed on physical details and medical terms. Patients are treated impersonally and the most important thing to take care of is their physical well being. (du Pre, 76) After talking with Dr. Kazan I felt that he was an extremely personable person. I still feel however by many of his responses that the Voice of Medicine was very clear and evident. I think the main reason for this is mainly due to the location of his job and what he has to deal with on a day to day basis. Dr. Kazan shared with us that he was one block in each direction from the the two worst projects in south central Los Angeles. His location is also known as the knife and gun capital of america and was a prominent spot during the Los Angeles riots. Dr. Kazan did make a point in saying that the emotional state of a patient is important and that emotional health is just as important as anything else. He said a lot of times people that come in with headaches or chest pains can really be linked to emotional problems and that the only way to truly find this out is to dive deeper and deeper. Although Dr. Kazan makes a strong effort in the emotional health of his patients I still feel after interviewing him that his views are similar to the

Voice of Medicine. Dr. Kazan talked about a phrase used in the medical field know as moving the meat which describes getting patients in and out as quickly and efficiently as possible. He also said its very difficult to not look at people as an object especially when you see the same people come in over and over for substance abuse and other drug related issues. Dr. Kazan also said that he has a set of around ten to fifteen questions that he asks every patient to help narrow the diagnosis. I feel that a pre-made script like this makes the experience much less personable. Dr. Kazan also talked a lot about the numbers and the business side of the hospital. He described these patients as dollar signs and the more people they are able to treat and see the more money they can make. During the Skype session with Dr. Kazan the different levels of socialization were also very clear to see. The first level which is the anticipatory stage talks about the want and desire people have to become doctors and the actual need we have for doctors. (du Pre, 76) Dr. Kazan talked about how he really didnt know he wanted to be a doctor until later in his life. He talked about how biology, studying plants, and dissecting animals wasnt that interesting to him and he knew he wanted to do something greater. He also talked about how his mother was an alcoholic and helping others out was always important to him. The encounter stage is when the a person is actually on site and working to become a doctor. (du Pre, 76) Dr. Kazan had lots to talk about on this issue. Dr. Kazan attended school at UCLA and he said that what he learned as an undergraduate and throughout medical school really didnt prepare him for what hes doing now. He said mainly that the six years working for the fire department and as an EMT were the best preparation. The last stage is metamorphoses. In this stage the person has finally made it and is working as a doctor. (du Pre, 76) This sense of finally making it is different for everyone but in the case of Dr. Kazan I feel that his real sense of being a doctor and making a greater impact on

others was when he took on the role of chairman of his department. He is in charge of everything his department does and has to come up with ways to better his business. Out of the four models of physician-patient relations Dr. Kazan hands down ascribes to the paternalistic model. Mainly because of the circumstances he works under but after everything he said I feel that it is very easy to match him with this model. Dr. Kazan even mentioned paternalism when he said that patients that come in to the emergency room want the doctor to make decisions for them. He says that he really directs the patients the way he wants to go. To better explain this he quoted Vince Scully by saying a good catcher can frame any pitch to look like a strike. He says 90% of his usual routine to find out whats wrong with a patient is to ask a number of questions and get their history, the other 10% is ordering tests. The main difference he sited between an ER doctor and a regular doctor is he wants to find out whats not wrong with you instead of whats wrong with you. Everything Dr. Kazan does is physician initiated, he tells the patient want they should do, and he is always trying to promote the health and well being of the patient. (Emmanuel, 2221) In all the interview with Dr. Kazan was extremely interesting. Dr. Kazan was extremely opinionated and not afraid to share his beliefs which made for a really impressive interview. As a patient one of the biggest things I have always wondered is how the doctor perceives his job and views us as we go into see him. To dissect the mind of an ER physician working in one of the harshest places in America was really a pleasure.

References

1.

DuPr, Athena. Communicating about Health: Current Issues and Perspectives. New York: Oxford UP, 2010. Print.

2.

Emmanuel, Ezekial J. Four Models of Physician-Patien Relationship. 1992. Print.