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Kurt Albrecht
Jule Wallis
ENG 3010
September 19, 2010
Discourse In The Field Of Pathology
A societal norm that impacts all members of a community is the art of communication.
Along with communicating with other members of society comes different discourse
communities in which we interact. A discourse community is a social group whose members
share common thoughts and ideas comparatively through written texts and research. Discourse
communities that are noticeable in society have become tailored to a specific group’s common
interests and goals, for example in the work place or a professional setting such as in the medical
field. In the medical field an area such as Pathology can be defined as the study and diagnosis of
disease. Pathology in itself is a very broad discourse and can be classified into two general
categories: general pathology and medical pathology. Medical pathology can be broken down
further into two main branches, which are anatomical pathology and clinical pathology.
Pathologists are doctors and society as a whole has deemed that doctors must exceed
communication standards in their discourse to accurately fulfill their job and expected duties.
Thus, doctors and Pathologists alike must have the mindset of a scientist in which they ignore
emotion and base their decisions strictly on empirical evidence and provable facts gathered
through effortless writing and research in their discourse. In order to better understand this
discourse my fellow classmates and I interviewed professionals in the field to gain their
perspective on the importance of writing, research and the overall persona that this discourse
entails with regards to both the academic and professional settings.
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Throughout my life I have always had an interest in the medical field; the workings of the
human body have always fascinated me, however I have always approached thing from a
scientific methodology. After doing some research, I realized that the field of pathology offered
many opportunities which sparked my interest. Becoming a pathologist would give me the ability
and know how to apply my scientific mindset towards a career in the medical field that would
provide me with an enriched sense of knowledge about the human body and how it operates. For
my project, I interviewed Ed Uthman, MD who is a practicing pathologist in Houston, Texas. Dr.
Uthman is currently on the American Board of Pathology and he is an accomplished researcher
who has published many books dealing with the discourse of pathology and cutting edge
knowledge of medical procedures and diseases. I felt that it was best to interview an expert in the
field and I was very lucky to have been put into contact with such an accomplished and
intelligent individual. My interview questions are structured about the discourse of pathology
and the influence of writing and research both in an academic setting as well as the professional
setting.
Before I started this project and conducted the interview, I was under the impression that
pathologists participating in their discourse rarely wrote and published their own works besides
the written reports they are obligated to complete. Conventional society has generalized
pathologists in such a manner that portrays them as only conducting autopsies to discover the
underlying cause of death. They do not consider that their discourse requires in depth research
and writing both dealing with a patient’s illness and cause of death and also about the practices
of their work and emerging diseases and techniques of diagnosing such diseases. According to
Dr. Uthman, a common misconception about this discourse is that pathologists rarely write or
publish and that pathologists are isolated when in fact pathologists interact with a wide variety of
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discourse communities and individuals; pathologists are doctors (personal communication,
September 13, 2010). By conducting this interview, I was exposed to the insight that most
pathologists are encouraged to publish their findings because in this discourse all areas are
subjected to peer review by its members.
The process of entering the discourse of pathology can be a lengthy one depending on the
desired path that one decides to follow in this broad spectrum. A pathologist is considered to be
either a practicing M.D (Doctor of Medicine) which is granted by a medical school or a D.O
(Doctorial degree for Physicians) which is granted by taking the USMLE (United States Medical
Licensing Exam). As a result, in addition to the typical undergraduate degree, there is also an
addition four years of medical school. “Pathology is a recognized medical subspecialty with
board certification” (Who is the Pathologist). Pathology is one of the longest postgraduate
training programs, entailing 4 to 5 years. After board certification, there are several
subspecialties in which the pathologist can purse to gain addition expertise, such as forensic
pathology for example. Depending on the chosen subspecialty this can range from 1 to 3 years of
additional training.
People who generally participate in this discourse are highly skilled individuals who are
trained to assist the pathologist. The pathologist’s assistant and clinical laboratory scientist play
an extremely important role in this discourse; without their interaction and communication the
pathologist would not be able to fulfill the required tasks in a timely and efficient manner. The
pathologist’s assistant and clinical laboratory scientist can be equated to the professional
relationship between a nurse (RN) and a leading physician (Who is the Pathologist). When
considering the overall discourse, the number of involved professionals can vary when
considering the setting, hospital vs. a laboratory. A transcriptionist is also involved in this
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discourse; s/he ensures that the pathologist’s dictated diagnosis is put to print. The participants in
this discourse rely heavily on communication and according to Dr. Uthman, when assisting the
pathologist the methods of documentation that are followed are both written and oral (personal
communication, September 13, 2010).
Considering the notion that writing and research play such an important role in this
discourse it is imperative that one adjusts to this mindset while in the academic setting. Dr.
Uthman stated that the amount of writing and research in school compared to the professional
field is quite similar. He relayed that by the time you have your degree you will need to be able
to write clear and concise reports and that research at the university level does matter, so writing
may be more intense during this time (personal communication, September 13, 2010). While in
an academic setting, there are many resources that one can consult for research. According to Dr.
Uthman, a major database that can be consulted is PDS, which has a Data Warehouse and
Pathologist’s Workstation which is very helpful (personal communication, September 13, 2010).
Dr. Uthman also confirmed many journals that are available to students for research such as: The
American Journal of Pathology, Journal of Clinical Pathology, Modern Pathology and
Toxicologic Pathology (personal communication, September 13, 2010). Taking into account the
longevity and difficulty of this discourse, it would be ideal to offer additional programs to assist
students with writing in an academic setting. Dr. Uthman described that students should be
taught to write for the field that they are entering, so a discipline specific writing course would
be ideal (personal communication, September 13, 2010).
Once an individual reaches the professional setting, the influence of research and writing
should feel like second nature. According to Dr. Uthman, research is ongoing in pathology
because cases require research, notes and documentation. All areas of pathology outside of
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forensic pathology are subject to peer review, by which the pathologist’s work is formally
reviewed and criticized by other pathologists. To a general pathologist, who is held to a near100% accuracy rate in his or her diagnosis, the report of the findings of a forensic pathologist can
read more like speculation than determination. The thinking that goes into the assessment of the
cause and manner of death, as well as time of death, can be very subjective in comparison to the
thinking involved in clinical decisions on living patients (personal communication, September
13, 2010). When in the field Dr. Uthman stated that the resources that were most reliable for
research could come from conferences, journals, and articles that are recently published because
they indicate where one should be researching. He also noted that the PDS is a reliable tool that
is continued to be used in the professional field as well as academic (personal communication,
September 13, 2010). In this discourse it has been noted that communication is done via oral
submission and also written. Dr. Uthman clarified that when conducting an autopsy it is
specifically personal preference whether or not the pathologist uses oral documentation over the
standard written documentation. He stated that his preference would be oral documentation
because it is quicker and it allows one to take in more information (personal communication,
September 13, 2010). Dr. Uthman also confirmed that the accepted format of writing in this
discourse is typically APA or AMA (personal communication, September 13, 2010).
Conducting this interview allowed me to get an adequate feel for the persona of the
discourse that I hope to one day join. Dr. Uthman described some mistakes that he made when he
began his venture into this discourse and they included: not having a thick skin and a strong
stomach. Understanding that many times in this field people will be upset with your findings and
attack you, and also the fact that you will be subjected to rotting bodies, etc. Truly understanding
what the job entails does not come until you are on the job for awhile (personal communication,
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September 13, 2010). Dr. Uthman also stressed that one must have good communication skills
and one must have the mind of a detective, so one will have to easily move within various
discourse communities (personal communication, September 13, 2010). Dr. Uthman discussed
some motivating factors as to why he joined this discourse community which included: the hours
are better than for most other physicians, but this is not a nine-to-five office job by any means.
Do not even think about going to medical school if you are a clock-watcher. Dr. Uthman also
stated that you have the satisfaction of not only helping to put criminals away, but of comforting
grieving families, thus, “It was over very quickly. She did not suffer.” The final reason that Dr.
Uthman entered this discourse was that this job is very challenging and rewarding; boredom will
not be a problem (personal communication, September 13, 2010).
In conclusion, communication is a major part of society and how people in different
discourse communities interact with each other and strive to achieve common goals. Discourse
communities have proven to be vital in a professional setting, such is evident in an area of the
medical field, pathology. Pathology is a broad discourse in and of itself but the tight knit
members of this discourse keeps it functioning efficiently by their tireless and effortless
communication, documentation and research. The discourse of pathology may be a difficult one
to enter but the high expectations and standards that are set allow for the proper treatment and
diagnosis of a patient and or deceased person. Contrary to the common belief, pathologists
regularly conduct research and publish their findings in journals to educate others and also to
critique and better their own discourse. Writing and research has been emphasized through the
academic setting and is taught in a practical manner to allow for the preparation to enter the
professional discourse. In this discourse its members are held to a very high standard of accuracy
and their findings and documentation must be empirical and void of any personal biases, it must
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stay strictly from a scientific standpoint. If one plans to enter this discourse they must be
prepared for the longevity of the life changing and rewarding program that lies ahead of them.
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Works Cited
Uthman, Ed. “Pathology Discourse Interview Questions” Message to Ed Uthman.
13 September 2010. Email.
“Who is the Pathologist.” The Doctor’s Doctor. 29 November 2006.
Thedoctorsdoctor.com. Web. 16 September 2010.
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