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Medical narcissism

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Medical narcissism is a term coined by John Banja in his book, Medical Errors and Medical Narcissism.[1][2]

Banja defines "medical narcissism" as the need of health professionals to preserve their self-esteem leading to the compromise of error disclosure to patients.

In the book he explores the psychological, ethical and legal effects of medical errors and the extent to which a need to constantly assert their competence can cause otherwise capable, and even exceptional, professionals to fall into narcissistic traps.

He claims that:

...most health professionals (in fact, most professionals of any ilk) work on cultivating a self that exudes authority, control, knowledge, competence and respectability. It's the narcissist in us all—we dread appearing stupid or incompetent.

References

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  1. ^ Banja, John, Medical Errors and Medical Narcissism, 2005
  2. ^ Banja, John, (as observed by Eric Rangus) John Banja: Interview with the clinical ethicist