I recently read an article on CNN about an Oncologist who has been treating a patient using radiation for a mass in their mouth. It turns out that doctor has been shooting the radiation on the wrong side of the mouth, and ended up doing so about 29 times! How does a person, especially a doctor whom you trust for your personal well-being, make this type of mistake?
This article reminded me of the topics we discussed in class regarding Project Management. Although this isn’t really a “project”, the doctor could have still used some characteristics that were discussed in class, such as planning, organizing, and controlling. Although the doctor had a specific goal in mind (to remove the mass from the patient’s mouth), he clearly didn’t have any type of organization or appropriate action plan to remove it. Did the doctor have any type of deadline? Did the doctor have a projected timeline, or even an idea on when he will see progress on the removal of this mass? I’m no expert in the medical field or radiation therapy, but I personally think the doctor didn’t have any specific timeline, especially since he shot radiation into the patient’s mouth 29 times without seeing any results, and then realizing he wasn’t doing something right.
Plan of action for the doctor: take a Management class! The doctor clearly needs to learn some management techniques. As stated in class, a “project works best when work can be defined with a specific goal and deadline and the work contains complex tasks requiring specialized skills.” Obviously the doctor has the specialized skills required to perform this type of therapy, but the doctor also needs to focus on the following activities:
- Planning – The doctor clearly had a goal/objective in mind, but this stage requires more than just that. It also requires having a clear work break-down schedule and organization. Did the doctor have an idea of how many sessions it would take before noticing results or for the mass to be completely removed? If the doctor would have carefully planned this through, then he would know exactly where to shoot the radiation, and how soon he would be able to see the results.
- Controlling – This task involves monitoring resources, cost, etc. and revising plans to meet time and cost demands. The doctor should have clearly monitored the costs associated with conducting this type of therapy, especially since it affects the customer and/or the health insurance company. This task also involved revising the plan if needed. When the doctor didn’t see any results the first 10 times, did it reward additional concern, or maybe a new plan of action? Did he consider getting expert advice from a colleague in an effort to gain additional resources?
What do you think? Do you think the doctor knew exactly what he was doing? Do you think the doctor can use the aforementioned activities and apply them to his treatment schedules?
These types of situations are difficult to navigate, especially from the outside. My best friend is a nurse, and will soon be a nurse practitioner. We have often discussed medical errors, and especially major errors that seem as though they could have been avoided with some degree of ease. It is easy for us lay people to assume that perhaps the doctor did not know what he was doing. However, I think it is important to recognize that as humans, we can make mistakes. Perhaps when writing in the patient’s chart, the wrong side of the mouth was written in the diagnosis and treatment schedules. Then, in referring to the chart (or patient specific plan) to execute the treatment, the doctor follows what is written. I think this mistake could easily happen.
However, do I think that medical professionals could benefit from managerial training? Absolutely. A doctor can easily implement planning and control measures with the team around him in order to make sure that everyone is on the same page with diagnoses and treatments. Just as in business, it is important to check and double check, and to assess progress and make changes to achieve a desired result, it is important for medical professionals to do the same.
It seems to me that in this situation the doctor not only didn’t know what he was doing, but that his work in both the planning and controlling stages. By applying both of these stages to future treatment schedules, the doctor could better ensure success and treatment of the patient. Also, he probably could have developed a better treatment plan by using more in depth planning skills and researching other treatment methods. In this case, maybe the doctor did make an acceptable error, but it sounds like he did not take enough time analyzing the patient’s issues. This could be considered part of the controlling stage as well.