Elizabeth Lerner Papautsky is a psychologist.

We don’t just have cancer. We have a whole life to live.

Conditions
October 9, 2019

When asking about a potentially overwhelming side-effect of an impending new medication, my nurse told me, “Don’t worry until you get there.”

OK, I get it. I just didn’t die from breast cancer. I’ve had worse. But come on. Let’s do better. Let’s have a conversation.

There are many things nobody tells you about cancer. Nobody tells you that cancer is a full-time job. We are not just navigating our cancer care …

Read more…

We don’t just have cancer. We have a whole life to live.

The currency of science and the value of stories

Physician
September 4, 2018

What is evidence? How do we gather evidence of patient harm? More importantly, what is the evidence that counts?

A research paper dating back to 2004 suggests that besides research evidence, clinical and patient experiences, as well as contextual information also constitute evidence. However, the only currency of science is data collected through systematic and rigorous research.

But when it comes to the business of medical error, Read more…

The currency of science and the value of stories

Caregivers have the power to prevent medical error

Patient
July 10, 2018

What if it is your parent? Your spouse? Your child?

Imagine supporting a loved one through a journey of serious illness. You go to all the appointments, know all the medications, almost feel the aches and pains as if they were our own. You repeat the same thing over and over again to one doctor after another making sure nothing slips through the cracks. Did somebody write this down? Isn’t this …

Read more…

Caregivers have the power to prevent medical error

What does curiosity have to do with patient safety?

Patient
May 23, 2018

Why do we say “curiosity killed the cat?”

Isn’t curiosity what drives people to ask insightful questions? To keep an open mind? And to continue learning at age 6 or 60, alike?

Curiosity is what sets apart people who are fixed in their opinions and beliefs and those who adjust in light of new information. Recently, I read an article in The New Yorker that suggested that Donald Trump doesn’t read books …

Read more…

What does curiosity have to do with patient safety?