EDITOR'S COLUMN
Fistbumps and Reflections
on the Good Society
Martin McKneally
|
Fistbumps are celebratory greetings,
expressing proper respect
[“props”]. I have been using
them ever since the SARS epidemic
of 2003, in the hope of
eliminating the handshake – a
highly effective mode of passing
around respiratory viruses and
other pathogens. Ghareeb et al
(1) in the Orthopedic Division
at West Virginia University
recently made headlines in the lay media with their
publication of a randomized trial demonstrating reduced
colony counts from fist impressions on agar, compared
to open hand impressions. Both participants in the study
(there were only two) traversed the hospital opening
doors and exchanging hand greetings with colleagues
throughout the University Hospital. Skeptical Scalpel
(http://skepticalscalpel.blogspot.ca/2014/08/should-healthcare-workers-stop-shaking.html), the anonymously
blogging former surgical department chair, skeptically
critiqued the study for its low N, confounding
variation in sample area [fist prints are half the size of
flat hands] and peculiar protocol. (“Surgeons and other
healthcare workers don’t go around the hospital shaking
hands with each other”). Nevertheless, the media
found the study worth sensationalizing around the
world, advancing my previously data-free hypothesis.
Jim Rutka, undeterred by previous experience with controversial surgeon authors, has invited Skeptical Scalpel
to speak at University Grand Rounds this year.
That said, let’s give a respectful Spotlight Fistbump
to Bob Bell, setting an example for our trainees and
staff by bringing surgical decisiveness and persistence
to the Ministry of Health; to Mike Tymianski and Paul
Walker for moving us forward on commercialization of
surgical science; to Robin MacLeod for leading clinical
programs and quality initiatives as vice president of
Cancer Care Ontario; and to the recent recruits and new
residents - the future of our department. A bump to
Jean Deslauriers, carrying the thoracic surgery
|
tradition
of Griff Pearson and Norm Bethune to China. And a
bump to Zane Cohen. The perceptive veteran columnist
Rick Salutin aptly described Zane in the Toronto Star
as a hero who disdained the drama and attention of the
media scrum when caring recently for a famous patient.
After giving a clear and respectful clinical summary,
his calm, polite “I don’t think I’m going to answer that
question” was a teaching moment for us all, including
the reporters.
I had the privilege this Fall to attend an Arden Seminar
at Windsor Castle, a week of reflection and renewal
focused on discussions based on the book ‘The Good
Society’ by Ken Galbraith, the great Canadian-American
economist and writer, and other readings ranging from
John Donne to Eldridge Cleaver to ‘Orange is the New
Black’. The concerns expressed by the predominantly
American participants about their society were palpable
and poignant. My descriptions of Canadian society,
though far from utopian, were a source of envy. I was
able to neutralize the misconception that medicine is
socialized in Canada, and welcome migrants from the
US if the election turned out as it subsequently did.
Finally, a word about Mentor, the eponymous Greek
model for our Mentorship program described in this
issue. Mentor taught Odysseus’s son Telemachus martial
arts and other important skills, but it took Diana, the
Goddess of the Hunt, to tell Telemachus to drive off
the suitors who were importuning his mother Penelope
for her hand in marriage, eating Odysseus’s food, and
exploiting his land while he was away fighting the
Trojans. We are fortunate to have an increasing number
of thoughtful Dianas in our department – we are grateful
that they are mentoring us toward a more holistic understanding
of our mission, and a more humane version of
our community.
M.M.
REFERENCES
1. Ghareeb PA, et al. Reducing pathogen transmission in a hospital setting. Handshake versus fist bump: a pilot study. J Hosp Infection 2013; 85:321-323.
|