Reporting an elderly doctor. And suffering from snitch guilt.

He struggled to hear when people talked to him. He asked the same questions over and over. He fell asleep when really important conversations were going on around him. But it wasn’t until he missed an emergency call that I knew I had to act. I spoke to a higher-up about this elderly doctor out of concern for patient safety, and for several weeks the guilt tested my dual loyalties — one, to the people in my profession, and two, to my patients. On one hand, it didn’t feel right throwing another doctor, especially one of color, under the bus. After all, we are few and far between and need to support each other. But on the other hand, I was seriously concerned that his ability to care for patients properly was compromised. The doctor was a locum tenens, a traveling physician who covers for other colleagues when they go on vacation or maternity leave. Parachuting into a hospital setting is challenging for the most acute-sensed doctor, but for this man, who struggled with electronic medical records, whose hearing aids barely worked, who would write discharge notes for patients I’d already sent home, I’m sure it was worse. I was a resident. I was supposed to be learning from him. Instead, I felt like I was cleaning up after him, which I had no business trying to do. The night after I spoke about my concerns, I couldn’t sleep. “I just feel really bad about what I did,” I explained to my husband. I could feel the tears pooling in my eyes. I, the resident, was the onl...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Physician Geriatrics Hospital-Based Medicine Source Type: blogs