What Clinicians Can Learn About Managing Uncertainty: Dr. Jenny Moffett of RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Dublin

Having the ability to manage uncertainty is helpful in all professions, but perhaps especially so in medicine where uncertainty abounds and the stakes for managing it are high. Despite that, medical students receive little training in this area, something which our guest today, Dr. Jenny Moffett of RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences in Dublin, is working to change. “There are approaches to uncertainty that can be learned. We can change our perspective and perceptions around uncertainty, stepping away from always viewing it as something aversive, but perhaps maybe looking at it with a little bit more curiosity and openness, and that's definitely a transformation that faculty can make,” says Dr. Moffett, the program director of the Postgraduate Diploma in Health Professions Education. In addition to a perspective shift, Moffett also believes providers should develop skills to talk about uncertainty with patients in an open and honest way. “Clinicians can say, I'm on this journey with you. I don't have all of the answers, but we have paths, we have options, and I'll be there with you as we work them out.” Join host Caleb Furnas as he explores Dr. Moffett’s fascinating work in this area which includes development of an immersive puzzle game that encourages students to address complex, ambiguous, and unpredictable issues.

Mentioned in this episode:

RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences

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