Doing nothing is different from doing no harm, that endlessly advertised
professional goal. You can do a lot of things and still do no harm — and often
not much good either, each effort accomplishing little enough that the sum total
remains at zero. Often by that time the leg or the back or the virus has taken
care of itself.
Doing nothing is also different from handing out placebo medications, an ethically complex activity featuring doctor as shaman. To really do nothing, all shamanic trappings must be abandoned: stethoscope, prescription pad, weighty pronouncements, the works. And yet — and this is key — doing nothing is also quite different from saying, “There’s nothing I can do for you; goodbye.” Most doctors are masters of this final nothing. But keeping a therapeutic relationship afloat without the usual tools, tricks or enticements — that is a rare achievement, and surely harder than the hardest microsurgery.
- Art of Doing Nothing
Doing nothing is also different from handing out placebo medications, an ethically complex activity featuring doctor as shaman. To really do nothing, all shamanic trappings must be abandoned: stethoscope, prescription pad, weighty pronouncements, the works. And yet — and this is key — doing nothing is also quite different from saying, “There’s nothing I can do for you; goodbye.” Most doctors are masters of this final nothing. But keeping a therapeutic relationship afloat without the usual tools, tricks or enticements — that is a rare achievement, and surely harder than the hardest microsurgery.
- Art of Doing Nothing
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