Ghost of Medical Gaslighting

Abstract

Medical gaslighting is when the actual symptoms of patients are dismissed or downplayed by medical professionals. It occurs frequently among patients suffering from chronic illnesses for which medical science gives no authoritative diagnostic protocol or effective treatment and those from populations underrepresented in clinical trials such as the female gender, specific races and ethnicity, third gender and patients with disability. Gaps in scientific knowledge and missing empathy have been cited as possible reasons. Respecting patient symptoms, accepting epistemic humility and investing in research may be possible solutions for this disharmony.