Reflections on two Aspects of Medical Training based on the Experiences of Medical Students

Abstract

The use of metaphors to represent the complex situation in which institutionalized chronic patients find themselves can help in better decision-making by the doctor who cares for these patients. This article discusses, based on reports of two clinical experiences of medical students with such patients, two important metaphorical aspects for medical training: 1) gut feelings – a recognized skill that improves over years of clinical practice, but which is difficult to define and 2) the doctor as the “second prism” -in analogy to Isaac Newton’s optical experiment- in which the doctor plays the role of a second prism that receives all information from the patient, family and the multidisciplinary team ( coloured lights) and transforms them into a therapeutic plan that provides safety for the team, assistance and comfort for the patient (with the convergence of all coloured lights into white light back to the patient).