Creative Diagnoses

By far the greatest part of human creative endeavour is the product of conjoint activity. What has been inherited, what has been taught and what has been learned all combined to allow a forward strategy.

However, creative genius depends upon a single individual. It is true that that individual will have acquired the “shoulders upon which to stand” from others, but at the end of the day the assembly of knowledge, thoughts, and reasoning resulting in true creative accomplishment can only come from a single individual’s “inspiration”.

Much the same can be said of medical diagnoses. Some are straightforward and can be learned and managed “cookbook fashion”.

However, the most difficult diagnoses are the product of “creative genius”. This can only be done by a single individual, based on an existing, inherent, compendium of acquired capabilities, but nevertheless conjured in isolation.

It is this creativity which is suppressed by the “tick box” approach to medicine, at the level of both medical administrators and the expectations of the patient population.

If suppressed as by this type of ritualisation the most challenging and difficult diagnoses will never be reached.