'intuition'

[Guest guest]

All -

 

Classifying the processes of clinical assessment as intuitive can be counterproductive. In addition, it can be a very fruitful endeavor to apply the discipline of uncovering the decision algorithms underlying the intuitive process.

I attempt to discourage my students from basking in the glory of their intuition. Many are extremely talented in that regard. However, it does not serve the larger picture of practitioner communication processes, nor the cultivation of the knowledge or processes that ran subliminally. There is gold in those successful unconscious processes.

 

Will

[Guest guest]

It is incredible the resources represented here on this topic. I

recall this topic being treated while I was in school, and the

teacher's reply was very enlightening to me. He said that intuition

isn't a feeling you get while performing an intake. Rather, he said,

it is the result of years of experience and exposure to thousands of

patients. You may not be able to recall the exact situations from

your past, but they heavily influence the decisions you make in

regards to your current patient and how you will treat.

 

It's like walking. When you walked today, did you concentrate on all

of your motions. Did you specify which of the quads or the hamstrings

should activate and when? Or did you just activate your intuitive

sense of how to walk and do it? To some species, your act seemed

miraculous, while to you, it was second nature.

 

His recommendation was simply this. Until you have enough experience

and exposure, you have to depend on the knowledge that is available

from other practitioners to guide you. Trying to work from your gut

feel without adequate experience potentially violates the prime

directive: Do No Harm!!!

 

Then there is the problem of dealing with insurance companies and

other Western professionals. If you are treating your

patient " intuitively " and someone asks you for your findings, you may

have a difficult time explaining yourself or defending your thinking.

 

Just my 2 cents,

 

Jim