Posted on July 16th, 2017 by Dr. Blumenfield
Narcissism The legend is that Narcissus was a handsome Greek youth who rejected the desperate advances of the nymph Echo. As a punishment, he was doomed to fall in love with his own reflection in a pool of water. Unable to consummate his love Narcissus was said to stare at his image in the pool […]
Posted on October 18th, 2014 by Dr. Blumenfield
How We heal and Grow : The Power of Facing Your Feelings by Jeffery Smith, M.D. How We Heal and Grow: The Power of Facing Your Feelings by Jeffery Smith, M.D. I was recently asked by my colleague and friend Dr. Jeffrey Smith, to write the Foreword for this new book that he has written. […]
Posted on June 30th, 2010 by Dr. Blumenfield
There is a website titled Postsecrets to which people send artistic postcards with a secret on it. Recently someone from San Francisco wrote a postcard indicating an intention to jump off the Golden Gate Bridge.
There was an outpouring of responses which resulted in special page on Facebook linked to this postcard on which over 60,000 people have responded with words of support. This phenomena as a form of social empathy is discussed.
Posted on June 16th, 2010 by Dr. Blumenfield
It may be possible to identify medical students who have good empathic qualities during the medical school admissions interview. A technique is described where video clips of simulated patients interviews are shown to students in the classroom in order to teach them the best empathic responses. An empathic response can also be demonstrated to students during the teaching of medical interviewing at the bedside with real patients.
Medical students can show resistances to being taught how to respond empathically. Life experience may be the best teacher of this important quality for physicians.
