The Power of Regret

Abstract

When we consider regret in medicine, we typically think of the feeling that follows a poor clinical outcome. For example, a friend in his late 60s had prostatitis. He did not like taking pills and after reading up on treatment options, he insisted on a once-a-day regimen with a fluoroquinolone antibiotic. It led to prompt relief of symptoms. But several weeks later, he had a spontaneous rupture of his Achilles tendon — a recognized though rare side effect of the drug. “Why did I insist on that antibiotic?” he asked bitterly, as he trawled over his care. His story contains two essential elements that lead to regret: imagining that the present situation would have been better if one had acted differently, and self-recrimination for having made a choice that led to a bad outcome.