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Competence, capability and confidence

BDJ In Practice volume 36, pages 26–27 (2023)Cite this article

'When I use a word,' said Humpty Dumpty in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less.' To that Alice replied, 'The question is, whether or not you can make words mean so many things.' Humpty Dumpty then pronounced, 'The question is, which is to be master - that's all.'1

The three words contained in the title of this article are critical in the context of any decision to carry out a patient's care and treatment. And yet they are regularly misunderstood, conflated, and confused, resulting in poor treatment decisions, unsatisfactory patient care and medico-legal challenges that could and should have been avoided.

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References

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  3. Kruger J, Dunning D. Unskilled and Unaware of It: How Difficulties in Recognising One's Own Incompetence Lead to Inflated Self-Assessments. J Pers Soc Psychol 1999 77: 1121-1134.

  4. Hodges B, Regehr G, Martin D. Difficulties in recognising one's own incompetence. Novice physicians who are unskilled and unaware of it. Acad Med 2001: 76: S87-S89.

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  1. BDA Indemnity, London, United Kingdom

    Kevin Lewis

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  1. Kevin Lewis
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Correspondence to Kevin Lewis.

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Lewis, K. Competence, capability and confidence. BDJ In Pract 36, 26–27 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41404-022-1828-2

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