Australia's Most Trusted Person 2012 - Charlie Teo
For this Sydney neurosurgeon and founder of the Cure for Life Foundation, trust is about doing the right thing – every time.
Charlie Teo is brash, brave, and will try his hardest for his patients no matter what the odds. He has faced criticism from his peers for offering “false hope” to people seemingly robbed of any hope by the curse of incurable cancer. But Australians admire these qualities – he flies in the face of his critics.
Survey respondents described Teo as inspirational, a great role model and, above all, devoted to his patients.
We asked Teo what trust means to him and how it has shaped his life:
“Trust is the most important thing. I have to trust my patients as much as they trust me. A patient has to understand that a doctor cares for them. Not that he’s the smartest guy, but there is this trust that he will do the right thing by them.
“If I can’t trust the patient to understand that, I will reject the patient. It’s got to be a two-way street. Every time I operate I have to remind myself that this patient is a member of my family. That’s why I have great results and the reputation I’ve got. It’s so easy to ignore the family who wants to speak to you at 10pm and you want to go home and see your kids. I have to consciously say to myself, ‘Charlie, wait, you’re a member of that family. What if that was your child on the table?’
“For every nurse I work with there are ten I’ve rejected. I’m surrounded by a very small, select group of people I can trust. I’m not the most popular person in the operating room and I make absolutely no excuses for that.
“The person I trust the most is my wife. She’s my greatest ally and I can trust her to tell me the truth. I know she would never do anything to hurt me or my reputation. One other person I trust is my personal assistant, Laine. I would trust her with my life.
“I’m not the best judge of character. I have a failing where I initially trust people until they hurt me. I’ve been burnt a few times. A teacher once said, ‘You expect so much of the people around you, you trust people implicitly and make huge demands of yourself. You cannot expect that of everyone. You need to back off.’ But I didn’t listen.
“I expect the same amount of trust, loyalty and commitment from the people around me as I give to them.”
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3 of 5 Comments |
| Melissa Winkel on 23 April 2013 ,10:34 I have just found that Charlie Teo was voted the most trusted person for 2012, Go Charlie, I agree 100 percent, he has always shown me the best of care and will to beat yet another surgery he is a amazing surgeon who gives you the confidence to tackle what's ahead when no others are able to do so, because they don't have that same trust in themselves Charlie trusts his own ability and is the best because of that, his confident manner in what he can do passes through to the feeings of his patients which fills them with confidence and trust while still remaining honest about the outcome, he does not give false hope, you do feel like one of his family, his confidence and trust gives you the strength to know he will be there for you the next time you might stumble, ready to beat the next obstacle full of confidence. I have trust him with my life and will keep doing so its easy to trust someone who shows such understanding and genuine care for your well being, Charlie always visits me after surgery filled with a infectious energy like no other specialist I've ever meet, your awesome Charlie don't ever change a thing you do your one in a million ! |
| Victoria Conn on 17 September 2012 ,10:55 In response to Mary Reidy - There could not be a more suitable person in the world that could of been given this title , I have the privilege of knowing Charlie and he is a loving kind amazing person that saves lives that goes above and beyond for anyone in his life and his patients . Good on you Charlie couldn't be more proud xxxx |
| david webb on 09 August 2012 ,15:07 You want brain surgery for peanuts! An operating team is expensive. I have connections with 3 types of specialist - bones, prostates, foot surgeons. ALL specialists don't visit afterwards - they give you their speciality and pass you onto others for their speciality. . All good managers do that. Keep it up Dr Teo. Great work. | See More Comments |
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