Reply to Why is it considered pretentious for non-MDs who have doctorates to use their title?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]What about psychologists? Psychologists have PhDs, work in healthcare, diagnose, bill to medical insurance, etc. They use Dr. when being addressed with title + last name. I think this makes sense. Though many use their first name even professionally. 
[/quote]

I have a friend who is a psychologist who has people call her this. I just shake my head internally.  [/quote]

Probably trying to distinguish herself from the many counselors who are not serious/well trained (see Life Coaches). [/quote]

I think psychologists is one of them that makes the most sense if they're clinical and seeing patients. Besides everything the first PP said, psychologists need to set boundaries with people they're seeing, so "just call me Jenny!" Is kind of inappropriate. [/quote]

I work in a large non-medical office setting where we have a psychologist on staff who does do clinical work. She refers to herself as “Doc <first name>” consistently, even with people she is not treating directly - introduces herself like that to people she doesn’t know, leaves voice messages, talks about herself in the third person, etc. This is in a place where everyone is otherwise informal and goes by just their first name. It rubs me the wrong way and several people were confused and thought she was a primary care doctor or psychiatrist when I asked them out of curiosity. I do agree it’s ok for a psychologist to go by Dr when speaking with patients in a fully clinical setting.[/quote]

maybe she doesn't feel she otherwise gets the level of respect she shuold or that she isn't considered on-par with her colleagues. I wuold personally tink of her as more qualified for certain work than a psychiatrist, and i would love to know she has a PhD.[/quote]

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