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Wisdom in Medicine: Growing and Changing in the Wake of an Error

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Post-Traumatic Growth to Psychological Well-Being

Part of the book series: Lifelong Learning Book Series ((LLLB,volume 30))

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Abstract

Health professionals, doctors, nurses, therapists, choose their profession because they want to help people. When things go wrong and the patient is inadvertently harmed in the course of medical care, it is arguably the most difficult thing that a clinician will face in their professional life. The result for the clinician can be devastating, including burnout, defensive practice, leaving practice altogether, or even suicide. But like other forms of adversity, this experience can also result in becoming a better, wiser clinician, changed in a positive way. This chapter explores the process of moving through the difficult experience of making a mistake as a clinician and learning and growing in the wake of that circumstance. We will explore what helps, what might stand in the way of that growth, and the implications for professionals and the institutions in which they work.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Margaret Plews-Ogan

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  1. Margaret Plews-Ogan
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Correspondence to Margaret Plews-Ogan .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Melanie Munroe

  2. Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Michel Ferrari

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Plews-Ogan, M. (2022). Wisdom in Medicine: Growing and Changing in the Wake of an Error. In: Munroe, M., Ferrari, M. (eds) Post-Traumatic Growth to Psychological Well-Being . Lifelong Learning Book Series, vol 30. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-15290-0_24

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-15290-0_24

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-15289-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-15290-0

  • eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)

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