Self-Awareness among Doctors: Importance of Reflecting on Medical Practice

The practice of Medicine today is weighed down by multiple factors that generate stress in the doctor. This issue becomes even more evident in resident physicians because of their particular circumstances, which often leads to burnout. It is, therefore, imperative to perform self-awareness exercises, that is, to reflect on the extent to which the experiences, emotional life, thoughts, beliefs, attitudes and values that the doctor experiences influence his or her life experience, including interaction with patients, families and other professionals. In this article, the authors wish to draw attention to some of the factors that influence the attitude of the physician towards the patient while exercising his or her profession and to develop reflexive practices to manage this.