What Nurses Would Like to See Added to the Doctors' Training Process: Nurses on the Doctors' Training Process

What do nurses really know about the doctor training process? Unless registered nurses have researched the doctor's learning process or participated in the training of medical doctors, they are not fully aware of what is involved. The majority of registered nurses have only partial knowledge and awareness. The time when registered nurses begin to think that there is something needed or lacking in the doctor's learning process is at the point of interaction. This is often, but not always, a time when there is patient care involved.

Effective communication between doctors and nurses can become an issue of concern, at any time. Thus, one must suggest that adding more advanced communication skills to the learning process of doctors, would be mutually beneficial to both doctors and registered nurses. A learning process is learning that is in process, whether this entails the doctor's learning process or the registered nurse's. Sometimes this requires experience, as well as education and that may only happen over time.

The learning process for doctors is ongoing. It is never fully realized or completed, which is a good thing, because it leaves the learning horizon open for new realms of development and discovery with regard to medical education, as well as research. It also allows continual transition in the practice of medicine. A doctor's learning process can be developed or expanded further, at any time; so can the learning process of registered nurses. Continued growth and development of the learning process is an important aspect of medical practice for doctors. An open horizon of learning is an ideal to strive towards. This can be attempted individually or collectively, on a professional, academic level or it may entail a degree of self-learning.

The experts on what nurses would like to see added to the doctor's learning process are nurses. One can only suggest that is a tongue in cheek statement. Doctors could suggest what they would like to see added to the nurse's learning process. At some point, they both might prove to be saying exactly the same thing. Both medical doctors and nurses are involved with an unending quest for medical perfection, with no short-comings in either direction. That is another tongue in cheek statement because imperfection is always a part of reality. The question invariably becomes one of how doctors can overcome medical imperfection. Registered nurses have to contend with that issue, as well.

Because of the current global shortage of doctors and nurses, accompanied by global recession and the rapid spread of viruses, there are numerous aspects of the doctor's learning process that could be enhanced further. There may already be a shift in the focus of the doctor's learning process because of these kinds of serious, global scenarios. But we must remember that as soon as one medical crisis is resolved, another can arise. In other words, finding an answer for one area of medical concern never means that the learning process is complete. In fact, the opposite may be true. Another doorway of concern may be opened, at the same time and it too, will have to be resolved. 

Resolution of medical issues often demands a high level of individual or collective training for doctors. At times, this may have to include additional health and medical education designed specifically for the masses, including some who may be without access to appropriate health care in remote regions of the world.

Another important aspect of the doctor's learning process may be focused on the need to include more individual and collective training in terms of writing and publishing on the Internet. This could include more advanced web site design and development, directed towards increasing the number of web medical sites, as well as the availability of educational medical web sites on a global level. Increased computer literacy may be needed by more doctors. This is not suggesting that the majority of medical doctors have not attained a high level of computer literacy, but rather that in some parts of world, there may still be doctors who would benefit from developing their computer skills further.

Also on a global level, there is always the issue of quality care, compassion and concern with regard to health care, as this invariably involves doctors, as well as nurses and other health care professionals. Ultimately, this addresses the health and welfare of patients and their families. These horizons must be continually expanded, as everyone including registered nurses will benefit from this, in the long run. Because of the growing trend towards global outreach in medicine, other kinds of medical philosophy beyond traditional, western medical training and practice may prove to be of value to doctors. This would also help to improve eastern-western relationships on a medical plane. This may need to be expanded further to include medical ethics, focusing on the sacredness of life.

Every doctor goes through his or her medical training wondering what he or she should have learned, but may not have learned, as do registered nurses. For both doctors and nurses, there is always the possibility of specialization. But, when a doctor or registered nurse chooses to specialize in one area of medicine, learning in another area may fall short. It is not possible for every doctor or a registered nurse to know everything. Teaching is a vital realm of the doctor's learning process. This is directed towards doctors and registered nurses, as well as other health care professionals, patients, their families and the general public.

Most doctors' teaching skills could be developed further, but the question of cost invariably arises. Adding further academic costs to an already over-burdened medical program for doctors, may be questioned. While this may prove to be a good route for many doctors to go academically, it may not be feasible. 

Medical personnel are entering into a no touch era to prevent the spread of infection globally. The question arises as to how doctors and registered nurses are to give a higher level of no touch quality care, without doing psychological damage to patients, who are in need of the human touch. 

There is a fine balance in the doctor's learning process, as they have to make decisions about what to learn and what not to learn. Learning something specific may result in not learning something else, that may be even more important. It may come down to the doctors having to make judgment calls about what to learn. 

Professional educators in the health care field always attempt to address the doctor's learning process in a way that maintains an even keel, on the medical ship of discovery. Nurses who question the doctor's learning process may need to attempt to sail that ship, at least once. Active involvement with the doctors learning process will invariably lead to more advanced learning on the part of registered nurses. The nurse's learning process will be enhanced, too.

There will always be areas of concern about the doctor's learning process for registered nurses, at least until that ship sails perfectly, but it probably won't be sailing with only a registered nurse or even a nurse practitioner at the helm. More than likely it will be a medical doctor, who has gone through the learning process to the best of his or her ability.