BMJ  2006;333:809 (14 October), doi:10.1136/bmj.333.7572.809-a

Letter

Belittlement and harassment of medical students

Is a source of medical education

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—From the moment a medical student wanders out of the cosy lecture theatre and is unleashed into the hospital, the habitual embarrassment begins. Where would we be without the terrifying words "Student doctors? Don't all look down; why don't you report the x ray?" or "Surgical sieve? Ring any bells?"

The constant questioning does feel like harassment because that is what it is. Through this Socratic method of teaching, teachers are wearing us down, exhausting us until our thoughts are clarified and any faulty reasoning is exposed.¹ This forces us to think systematically and act practically like "real" doctors. Getting it wrong can make you feel belittled, but that is common in life. My friends belittle me when I get something wrong in a pub quiz. It is the exposure and loss of certainty that we equate with humiliation, although this can arise simply from feeling inadequate.

Unfortunately, . . . [Full text of this article]

University of Nottingham Medical School, Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham NG7 2UH goly@doctors.org.uk

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