Wit Biopsychosocial Model

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A patient is a human being. Illness disturbs biological, social, psychological elements that make the patient human. The focus of this paper is to make the argument that the biopsychosocial model provides the most effective foundation for treating patient as a complete person, physically and psychologically, in the management of a disease with focus on five aspects: patient’s experience of illness, physician-patient communication, proficiency of end of life care, medical ethics and spiritual growth. This position will be corroborated by the film “Wit (Nichols & Brokaw, 2002)” through the end-stage palliative character Vivian Bearing's revelation that the practice of medicine is a complex combination of human empathy with the severities of …show more content…

Dr. Bearing grows spiritual near the end of life and finds the meaning in her life and is forced to accept that her physical body will cease to exist. As the illness progresses Dr. Bearing begins to become kinder, a change from her rigid, unforgiving personality. As she has reflected on key moments in her life she realizes that science does not comfort her as much as the compassion she is shown by Nurse Susie. During the end stage of her cancer, mentally and physically weak, Vivian Bearing sees her life as more than being a scholar when she reflects that, at this point in her life scholarly wit is not as important as human kindness. Bearing recognizes, in the end, the limits of academic pursuits and Holy Sonnets, that human being instead require the warmth of kindness. She forgoes poetry by John Donne to find comfort in a children’s book about kindness and compassion (Nichols & Brokaw, 2002). Bearings experience of illness that includes suffering: physical, emotional, social, and spiritual components has changed her from the independent, hard women she was prior to the illness. Factor into Bearing’s journey that could have supported her throughout her journey if her medical team had a competent end of life care suited for …show more content…

Dr. Kelekian’s failed to communicate to his patient using language that was clear, instead used medical jargon to deliver the news that Bearing was dying. He did not provide her support or allow her time to think about her decision to enter in his research study and he did not take the time throughout her illness to understand where her frame of mind was during her stages of the disease. Dr. Jason Poser a researcher under Dr. Kelekian and a one-time student of Bearing, is just as focused in research and remiss in his clinician duties. Bearing’s medical team, did not discuss end of life preferences and treated her as a body to experiment on. Bearing experiences increased fear and anxiety over the treatment and her future. Instead of her medical team the discussion of options for end of life has been left to Nurse Susie. The decision to revive Bearing should her heart stop also provides Nurse Susie with the responsibility, with Kelekian and Poser once again neglecting her needs. The decisions about the end of life for their patient will directly impact the research and to revive the patient would keep the trial going, but, at the cost of a human being with unheard wishes being ignored. The thoughtlessness of Poser is obvious in the following interaction with Bearing, “What do you say when a patient is apprehensive and

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