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CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal logoLink to CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association Journal
. 1988 Jul 15;139(2):121–124.

Physician self-awareness: the neglected insight.

M Longhurst 1
PMCID: PMC1268026  PMID: 3390780

Abstract

Self-awareness is vital to a physician's development. Understanding the impact of our internal subjective world on our attitudes and values and on the fantasies we have of reality is important to us as doctors. Some of the means of acquiring this self-knowledge include accurately perceiving the reflection of one's self in patients, understanding one's learning style, studying and enjoying the humanities, expressing one's self creatively, maintaining a sense of humour and examining one's reaction to experiences. When confronted by a person who is ill the physician must take action that is constructive and affirmative and not compromised by behaviour that originates in unexamined personal issues.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Kleinman A., Gale J. L. Patients treated by physicians and folk healers: a comparative outcome study in Taiwan. Cult Med Psychiatry. 1982 Dec;6(4):405–423. doi: 10.1007/BF00118886. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
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