Top 20 Qualities of a Good Doctor As Recommended By Dr David K Pillai

DOCTORS are among the most respected members of the society. Becoming a doctor requires dedication and hard work. It takes a lot of brainpower and perseverance to get accepted in medical school. Once admitted, students develop even more skills that help them to be successful in the profession. A great doctor is attentive, caring, and has a good bedside manner. It is important for medical students to study hard and get good grades, but they should also learn how to develop good relationships with patients.

So What Makes a Good Doctor?

To find out the answer, we spoke to Dr David K Pillai, the chairman of Kings International Medical Academy, the number one residential coaching institute in India. Here’s his list of qualities of a good doctor.

Essential Qualities of a Doctor

1. Excellent Communication Skills

A good doctor communicates clearly and effectively with his/her patients. They need to be able to convey complicated information in terms that patients can understand. This is done by explaining things clearly and simply, without relying on jargons or complex medical terminologies. Doctors also need to be tactful and sympathetic, so patients don’t feel criticized or judged. They should also be good listeners, so they can accurately interpret what they hear from their patients and make an accurate diagnosis.

2. Confidence

Doctors also need to be confident and decisive. There are times when doctors are subject to make quick decisions even with the limited information they have on hand, just to save a patient. While doctors should also be confident in their abilities, they should learn to allot time for leisure. Also, doctors who are humble enough to admit when they don’t know something have happier, longer careers.

3. Empathy

According to Dr David K Pillai, “A good doctor’s comforting and reassuring words are sometimes more powerful than medicines.”

Empathy refers to the ability of a person to feel or understand another person’s pain or suffering without experiencing the same thing. A doctor can put him or herself in the patient’s shoes without being overwhelmed by emotions. This quality allows doctors to develop strong relationships with patients, which helps them treat their illnesses more effectively.

4. Integrity

Integrity refers to the ethical state of being honest and having strong moral principles. As discussed earlier, doctors save lives on a daily basis so they need to be honest about their abilities and limitations. Integrity is a quality that keeps doctors credible. Every patient has the right to know the truth about his or her health; a good doctor is candid with patients, even if it means delivering bad news.

5. Focused

A good physician is also focused and very attentive to details. This helps them identify symptoms, which helps diagnose their patients’ problems more easily. A great deal of science and critical thinking go into diagnosing patients, so it’s important for doctors to be able to focus and concentrate on the task at hand. They also need to be able to prepare themselves mentally for their job every day so that they can give their patients the best care possible.

6. Understanding

Understanding the patient’s needs is vital for any physician. Understanding means being able to comprehend; sympathetic in regard to human weaknesses; forgiving. Patients need someone they can talk to, they need someone they can trust and sometimes they want reassurance that their symptoms are nothing serious or that their condition will improve with time or treatment.

Patients want a doctor who understands not only their condition but also their lifestyle and values. Such understanding will allow better communication about available treatment options and what each of them entails.

7. Competence

Doctors have to have a high degree of competence in their practice to be considered good physicians. They should be able to make the right decisions, apply the right treatments, and give the right advice. Doctors who are competent will provide patients with better care.

8. Unbiased

A competent doctor should also treat everyone equally regardless of their background and status in life. Treating all patients equally is important because it makes them feel that they are getting fair treatment and it helps build up their confidence. The doctor should never judge a patient based on their background or appearance but rather based on the symptoms that are exhibited during appointments. Having an unbiased attitude will help to ensure that patients get efficient care possible from their doctors!

9. Persistence

A good doctor is persistent in advocating for their patient’s best interests and does not give up easily when faced with challenges or obstacles. This is on behalf of those who depend on them for life-saving treatment options or health maintenance needs.

10. Stress management

Good stress management is essential for a physician, as many situations can cause stress for both the doctor and the patient. Likewise, it’s important for doctors to keep their cool even in these difficult situations. Stress can lead to burnout if not managed properly, which could interfere with personal life as well as career performance. Doctors must be able to handle stress well enough to perform at optimal levels every day so their patients can receive appropriate care.

11. Academic Excellence

It’s also important that a doctor is academically excellent. This means an excellent education, with good grades and experience in clinical work. It also means not resting on his/her laurels after earning a degree but rather to always seek opportunities for more learning throughout their career. Doctors should also be knowledgeable about new breakthroughs and advancements in medicine so that they can provide their patients successful care and treatments.

12. Commitment

A doctor should be committed to his work, his patients, and society. He/She should perform his/her duties efficiently and tirelessly. They are to make sacrifices, perform responsibilities, and progressively do research as much as possible. Being a doctor is a very demanding job that requires commitment before taking on it.

13. Collaborative

A quality doctor should be able to work with a variety of people and disciplines. The latter include working with patients, other doctors, specialists, family, nurses, administrative staff, and so on.

Doctors who work effectively with other health care providers and specialists are more likely to deliver excellent patient handling outcomes. A collaborative physician will give patients detailed information about their condition and treatment options, and will refer them to other medical professionals as needed.

14. Organized and Conscientious

Doctors will always be busy, so being organized is important. They must keep track of patients’ symptoms, priorities, and their own schedules. Conscientiousness means that doctors must pay attention to the details of their work and not overlook anything important. This is especially true in an emergency room or hospital situations where split-second decisions can be the critical point between life and death.

15. Passion

A passionate doctor can inspire patients to stick to treatment plans and make better lifestyle choices. Doctors who are passionate about their work are likely to stay up-to-date on medical advancements and will also do anything they can to help a patient recover quickly or manage a chronic condition effectively.

16. Possesses Leadership Skills

Great doctors know how to lead: they’re able to work well within a team, delegate responsibilities effectively and make decisions based on the needs of the patient. On top of their communication skills, possessing leadership skills make them superb managers who can minimize patient wait times, coordinate care, and manage a group of doctors and assistants for optimal results.

17. Lives and Promotes a Healthy Lifestyle

Doctors who take care of themselves are more likely to inspire patients to do the same. It’s been proven that physicians who adhere to healthy lifestyles are more likely to advise their patients on wellness-related issues like diet, exercise, and sleep patterns than those who don’t practice what they preach.

18. Humane

A doctor must care for others and act in their best interest, especially for those who are less fortunate or helpless. In a similar vein, the doctor must be sensitive to the feelings and ideas of patients, families, and other health professionals.

Doctors deal with desperate people who are going through great pain and suffering. There are moments when they get touchy which may result to a well-up of emotions. Doctors need to make life-changing decisions about their that they should never take it personally if a patient becomes upset or lashes out in anger or expresses fear. A good doctor is objective to handle these situations because they know that doing so would positively affect the patient.

19. Optimism

Even in difficult circumstances, doctors should remain optimistic. Patients are often scared and worried, so it helps if their physician is calm and confident even when the diagnosis is bad. This isn’t always easy, but it’s part of the job and is something students learn in medical school.

20. Courage to Deal with Uncertainty

In real life, very few patients fit textbook descriptions of medical conditions, so doctors must have the confidence to deal with uncertainty and the humility to admit that they don’t know everything. They must be comfortable making decisions under precarious situations until more information becomes available.

Take Away

Of course, there’s no one formula in becoming a good doctor, but working on developing the skills in this list can jumpstart the aim of realizing the goal of becoming a physician. Above all else, though, it helps to get into a medical school first!

“While the journey seems long and hard at the beginning with perseverance and dedication, the rewards at the end last a lifetime,” says the leading educator, enthusiastic philanthropist, and successful businessperson Dr. Pillai.

Kings International Medical Academy offers premium quality FMGE and NEET coaching and is a record-holder with high pass percentages. The association with Davao Medical School Foundation enables deserving candidates to pursue MBBS in the Philippines at a surprisingly low cost. His insight can help better understanding of what it is that distinguishes a great doctor, if anyone would want to be a doctor, or what one needs to know about the field of medicine.