Thursday 7 May 2009
Uni Rant
I don't really like some things about myself. Well, I half do and half don't. I come across as a bit of a teacher's pet, know-it-all smug cow at uni. I'm aware of this, and I hate it, but to be honest it's mainly because everyone else just sits there, mouth slightly open, with a uniform blank expression on their faces. I want to stand up and cry out, "aren't you interested? Don't you care? This stuff is f*cking AMAZING!", but somehow don't think it would go down too well. I seem to be constantly questioning, seeking more knowledge, and it's great that I enjoy learning about mental illness so much, but it doesn't exactly help me when it comes to interacting with my peers. I want to say, "I'm just like you", but I'm not. I'd rather spend my break debating some new controversial issue or mulling over the last lecture, not discussing kids or husbands. I'm also short tempered with people who are ignorant. I can't stand it when people make blundering errors or ask ridiculous questions. For example, someone said during a lecture that all incontinent people lack capacity. "Are you sure you mean incontinent? Are you sure you understand the meaning of the word?". Yes, they say, when I worked on a Older Person's ward all the incontinent people lacked capacity. I was disgusted. The same when someone refers to a service user as a Schizophrenic - for f*ck's sake, they have been diagnosed with schizophrenia, but that does not define them as a person. I also get annoyed when people are unable to see past a diagnosis - why do you need to put a person's diagnosis on their care plan? Surely the needs that you should be focusing on are the current symptoms, the things which currently affect that person's life?
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3 comments:
I sympathise. I spend my time in uni alternating between being amused and angered by my fellow students ignorance and stupidity. For example, I once sat with my head in my hands during a presentation on negligence in which the speaker mispronounced 'negligence' every single time. And then I feel like an intolerant cow, before I realise that these people will one day have other peoples lives in their hands....
For example, someone said during a lecture that all incontinent people lack capacity.Also, to say that they "lack capacity" as a blanket statement is simply meaningless.
The Mental Capacity Act requires that all statements about mental capacity be time-specific (because somebody's capacity can fluctuate) and decision-specific (as, in capacity to do what? Consent to being given a bath? Give informed consent to treatment? Organise their finances?)
If somebody says to you, "Do they have capacity?" then the answer should be, "Capacity to do WHAT and WHEN?"
Yes, I really am this much of a Mental Capacity Act pedant. The parties are wild round at my house.
I think being a Mental Capacity pedant is a wonderful place to be. And I sometimes feel the same frustration with 'qualified' professionals. It is beyond frustrating.
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