Doctors make mistakes, can we talk about that? (click on link to watch Dr. Goldman’s talk)
This video is one of many great videos from TED talks. I found this particular one to be very fitting for many of the optometry community, including me, as it is always much easier for us to discuss our practice with a very positive spin. If an optometrist admits that they have made a mistake in clinic, business, management, or life, it unfortunately communicates weakness…..or does it? What I like most about Dr. Goldman’s talk is that communicating mistakes has just the opposite effect. Communicating mistakes opens dialogue between doctors that allows each to glean knowledge from the other. I would agree wholeheartedly as mistakes are an opportunity to learn, and is that not the purpose of our work? Optometry is a life of learning, learning to be a better clinician, learning to be a better leader, and learning to be a better person. Learning begins with admitting my mistakes and growing from those mistakes.
