letter
The patience of patients
Biji T Kurien The doctor, knowing full well the patience of patients, takes
Senior Research Scientist, Arthritis and Immunology, Oklahoma Medical his time to arrive at the clinic. Steadfastly ignoring calls from
Research Foundation, 825 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, Okla 73104, USA.
Biji-kurien@omrf.ouhsc.edu the clinic, he works diligently on grant proposals/lectures/
administrative matters until finally, unable to quench persist-
TO THE EDITOR : Patiens in Latin refers to someone who is
ent calls, he dashes out to see his patient patients.
suffering. However, in the real world the word “patient” also,
Now that the interminable wait is finally over, the patient
ironically, takes on elements of the more conventional meaning
patiently submits to an expert examination. He patiently
of the word in its adjectival form.
describes his symptoms (again) and patiently listens to what
A person becomes a patient when he becomes ill. From that
moment onwards he begins to comprehend the indubitable the doctor has to say.
reason for being tagged as a “patient”. He patiently bears the The need to draw on a seemingly immense reserve of
ride to the doctor’s office and waits with a dutiful patience, in a patience does not cease once the patient leaves the doctor’s
room appropriately dubbed the waiting room, until he is called surgery. After patiently waiting at the pharmacy for his
into the consulting room. Like a zombie, he patiently waits in prescription, he patiently takes the medicines according to the
the consulting room, obeying the dictates of the nurse to either doctor’s orders. He then patiently waits for the medicines to
stand on a weighing scale or sit on a chair for blood pressure take effect.
measurements, while he patiently answers a volley of insipid Therefore, calling a sick person a “patient” is particularly
questions about his health. In between, he waits patiently, with apt. It becomes slightly complicated when the terms “inpa-
a thermometer perched precariously in his mouth, as the nurse tient” and “outpatient” are used. Does a lack of patience
stares at her watch or waits for the thermometer to beep. Then eventually turn a patient patient into an inpatient?
he patiently submits to the discomfort of donating blood or the When all’s said and done, it is always better to be a patient
indignity of providing urine or sputum samples. Ultimately he patient than an impatient patient who tries the patience of
gets the golden opportunity to understand the real meaning of potentially impatient doctors who rely greatly on the potential
patience as he patiently waits for the doctor to arrive. patience of patients. ❏
MJA Vol 179 1/15 December 2003 653