Sisyphus or Pegasus? The Physician Interviewer in the Era of Corporatization of Care
Authors: Mack Lipkin
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (1996)

Editorials1 March 1996Sisyphus or Pegasus? The Physician Interviewer in the Era of Corporatization of CareMack Lipkin Jr., MDMack Lipkin Jr., MDNew York University Medical Center, New York, NY 10016Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-124-5-199603010-00010 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail With the increasing corporatization of medicine, are physicians becoming Sisyphean drudges toiling futilely, forced to roll the stone uphill faster and faster, losing patients, pride in quality care, autonomy, and their own health? This increasing prevalent self-image—correlated with high rates of burnout and fundamental dissatisfaction with the profession—contrasts with the happier, Pegasus-like myth of the physician soaring on the wings of science and professionalism, experiencing the joys of effectiveness, altruism, moral probity, and wealth that attracted so many of us to medicine. Implicit in much Sisyphean negativism is victimization—by the nature of things, in Camus' existentialist version, and by the ...References1. Kaplan SH, Greenfield S, Gandek B, Rogers WH, Ware JE Jr. Characteristics of physicians with participatory decision-making styles. Ann Intern Med. 1996; 124:497-504. Google Scholar2. Lipkin M. The medical interview and related skills. In: Branch WT Jr, ed. Office Practice of Medicine. 3d ed. Philadelphia: WB Saunders; 1994:1287-306. Google Scholar3. Dye NE, DiMatteo MR. Enhancing cooperation with the medical regime. In: Lipkin M Jr, Putnam SM, Lazare A, eds. 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Arch Intern Med. 1995; 155:1877-84. Google Scholar14. Maguire P, Fairbairn S, Fletcher C. Consultation skills of young doctors: I-Benefits of feedback training in interviewing as students persist. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed). 1986; 292:1573-6. Google Scholar15. Lipkin M, Kaplan C, Clark W, Novack DH. Teaching medical interviewing: the Lipkin model. In: Lipkin M Jr, Putnam SM, Lazare A, eds. The Medical Interview: Clinical Care, Education, and Research. New York: Springer-Verlag; 1995:422-35. Google Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: New York University Medical Center, New York, NY 10016Corresponding Author: Mack Lipkin Jr., MD, New York University Medical Center, 550 First Avenue, New York, NY 10016. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoCharacteristics of Physicians with Participatory Decision-Making Styles Sherrie H. Kaplan , Sheldon Greenfield , Barbara Gandek , William H. Rogers , and John E. 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Teaching to Communicate EffectivelyThe Effect of Patient–Provider Communication on Medication Adherence in Hypertensive Black Patients: Does Race Concordance Matter?Uncovering and validating clinicians’ experiential knowledge when facing difficult conversations: A cross-cultural perspectiveExploring the experiences and coping strategies of international medical studentsThe Doctor–Patient RelationshipThe Psychiatric InterviewThe patient’s role in the assessment of students’ communication skillsWhen there is no doctor: Reasons for the disappearance of primary care physicians in the US during the early 21st centuryThe Doctor-Patient RelationshipThe Psychiatric InterviewDoes Participatory Decision Making Improve Hypertension Self-Care Behaviors and Outcomes?Communication skills competencies: definitions and a teaching toolboxA model for communication skills assessment across the undergraduate curriculumAIDS Psychiatry: Psychiatric and Palliative Care, and Pain ManagementBack to the Future: From Managed Care to Patient-Managed CareThe Impact of Globalisation on the Development of Neuromusculoskeletal MedicineImpact of the physician's participatory style in asthma outcomes and patient satisfactionEvaluating the outcome of communication skill teaching for entry-level medical students: does knowledge of empathy increase?Postmodern medicineImproving physicians’ relationships with patientsRevenue Streams and Clinical Discretion 1 March 1996Volume 124, Issue 5Page: 511-513KeywordsBehaviorCommunication in health careEmotionsHabitsHealth care qualityHealth maintenance organizationsHypertensionPeptic ulcersQuality of lifeQuestionnaires Issue Published: 1 March 1996 CopyrightCopyright © 1996 by American College of Physicians. 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