Hi, my name is Derrick Kuan. I’ve been practicing as a General Practitioner in Perth, Western Australia, since graduating from the University of Western Australia and gaining my FRACGP.

I’ve always believed that each of us carries a unique story or theme throughout our lives. For me, that theme is growth. When I first stepped out of medical school, I was like hundreds of other young doctors: enthusiastic, eager to make my mark, and full of academic knowledge. But over the years, I’ve realised that the world has a habit of changing you through experience. You can choose to listen to those lessons or ignore them, but the lessons are always there.

A Lesson in Empathy

To be honest, looking back at those early years, I don't think I was a very good doctor. I was clever, but in a bookish, theoretical way. I lacked the ability to truly communicate with others. There was a part of me that was lacking in empathy.

While empathy is defined in many ways, I see it as the ability to not only understand what another person is feeling but to actually show that understanding. Medical schools try to teach this under the guise of "communication skills," but I believe empathy is actually a recognition of our shared humanity. At that stage of my life, I simply hadn't had the lived experience to bridge that gap.

Choosing to Change

For a long time, I believed that certain parts of ourselves were immutable and fixed. However, my perspective shifted when I became a GP supervisor. I watched my trainees and noticed that many of them had a natural facility for connecting with patients that I just didn't possess.

That observation changed everything. I realized that empathy isn't a fixed trait you're born with. Instead it’s a skill you can grow. I embarked on a journey to develop my own conversation and communication skills. I dove into books on reflective listening and began implementing these techniques into my practice every single day. I tried to look past just the "medical content" of a consultation to understand the emotional underpinnings of what was actually being said.

How This Shapes My Practice

This shift has made my work so much richer and more satisfying; it is truly what I look forward to every morning. In my practice today, my goal is to establish a personal connection - to see the person behind the complaint.

Sometimes I succeed, and sometimes I don’t, but the pursuit of that connection is what defines my work. I’ve learned that being a doctor is less about having all the answers and more about being present for the person sitting across from me.