Do you sometimes feel that the doctor you are speaking to is not smarter than you

[Anonymous]

Well if you think Dr. Google can do a better job, ask him for your Oxycontin.

[Anonymous]

Yes!!

[Anonymous]

If your doc seemed to not care, switch docs. Some of the young ones are still geared up to learn as much as possible. I have switched because I felt I had to do the research. But you really can not expect them to know everything. Just find one willing to listen and care enough to find an answer an answer is available.

[Anonymous]

Bugs me when the pediatrician keeps trying to push vaccines after everything I have read about how much harm they can do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am frustrated when doctors give you a prescription that you don't need. They do this so that they can justify collecting the fee.

I am frustrated when the doctor doesn't give me a prescription! I would not have arranged for sick leave and childcare in order to come to the doctor (and pay a fee) if OTC remedies or "wait and see" had helped.

I don't need a doctor to be smarter than I am. I need a doctor to ask questions and provide care based on my actual answers, rather than handing me a pre-printed flyer with the same information about my condition as I could find on WebMD. Add some value, please!

[Anonymous]

For the most part, I assume the doctors I visit know much more than I do about medicine in general and about particular conditions. Many, many of the doctors I and my soon have seen for various things have been fantastic.

But I've had some really frustrating experiences too. Not a single doctor over ~17 years of PCP and OB/GYN visits recognized the symptoms I described as endometriosis - and that failure to diagnose led to a lot of physical pain and heartache, and likely contributed to my infertility. By the time it was identified (while in emergency surgery for an ectopic pregnancy), the damage caused by the disease was extensive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Bugs me when the pediatrician keeps trying to push vaccines after everything I have read about how much harm they can do.

Is this intended as a joke?


Doctors don't know everything. I've brought up things they didn't consider. I have an amazing memory for medical facts, but I've never been to med school. That's why I still seek the advice of my doctor. When they're completely off in their assumptions and very sure of themselves, it annoys me. I seek out doctors that take the time to listen and advise.

[Anonymous]

Doctors will dissemble and that typically means they are selling you something that you probably don't need or is of questionable medical value and yes some of them operate this way. You have to be well researched and on your toes and be willing to take the time. We avoid going to the doctor as much as possible as a result. Our plan: Use a pediatrician we trust, one doc for a chronic care issue and the local urgent care center for everything else. Not great but the choices are so limited. I feel for the docs who are under great financial pressure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's frustrating when I know there's a routine procedure the Dr is required to do by the hospital that is actually not necessary and not recommended by their professional association. It's almost impossible to have a real conversation about the issue because the Dr has to kept his/her job but I just wish we could have an off-the-record side chat in which we both acknowledge this is BS and shouldn't be happening.

When the Dr parrots on as if he actually agrees with the hospital policy, despite the research showing its poor outcomes for patients, I feel like we're not on the same team and the whole field of medicine has lost its integrity.

+1! This is an excellent post. I would add that it is ridiculous that cost is not part of the discussion, like it is some big taboo for a doctor to go there. PLEASE! You are not fooling anyone. And stop with the unnecessary referrals.

[Anonymous]

I don't think it is an issue of whether a doctor is "smarter" (that is a sort of arrogant way to look at it!) I think it is a matter of being in control of your own treatment. Doctors are a health resource. You get as much info as you can out of them, second opinions if you need them, balance it with your own research, your conversations with your insurance coverage, and YOU make the decision that is best for you and your family. If you make major health decisions based on one doctor's opinion, you can't assume it's what is best. There are too many variables. And it is not their job to know everything - that is why they specialize - and they do not really know about the finances - you need to talk to the people who specialize in that complex topic separately.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I love that our family practice doctor doesn't pretend to know everything. My daughter had a really weird skin rash in high school that just would not go away. He pulled out his ipad and went to the Mayo website. I've seen doctors who act like they know everything about everything. I would much rather have one who admits that he doesn't.

Completely agree! The ones who pretend to know everything scare me. I'd rather a doctor say, "I don't know let me consult"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Bugs me when the pediatrician keeps trying to push vaccines after everything I have read about how much harm they can do.

Hahahaha ha!


So funny, oh wait....

[Anonymous]

I think that most doctors are adequately intelligent. I think that sometimes they tend to view risks/pros/cons in different terms than I do.