Bad Medicine

Good morning to all,
hope your day is going well out there.

Here's a few words on a story I just read.....

They're out there, lurking in broad daylight, and you might encounter them one day at a time when you are at your most vulnerable or in need.... I'm talking about bad doctors. In this day of health care being regarded as a multi-billion dollar business, there seems to be a dramatic shift from the kindly smiling doctor who cares, to the smirky, short answered doctor who cares, but only about the extent of your medical coverage. Surely I'm not referring to all doctors, as there are some incredible and compassionate people in health care, each with their own reasons for joining the profession. However, the margin of the incredible and compassionate when compared to the greedy and uncaring, seems to be growing but on the wrong side of the equation. I don't know if any of you have encountered a truly bad doctor, but I have had the misfortune of meeting a few when both of my grandmothers were nearing the end of their journeys and visited the hospital often.
I remember a time when I stopped by my grandmother's room at the hospital unexpectedly (she was 97 years old at the time), and overheard a male voice raising his voice for what I presume to be her being a bit difficult due to discomfort by some sort of test procedure. "Sit down! I'm not going to tell you again! I promise I'll call an orderly and have you restrained!", were the words I heard coming from behind the drawn "privacy" curtain. I drew back the curtain in one quick motion, causing the doctor to jump, and he immediately began a "please lie back maam, this will only take a minute, are you doing ok?" routine, but I had heard him at a time when he thought noone was around, and noticed how my grandmother looked frightened. In a fake calm, as I was restraining all I could to keep from throwing the guy out of the nearest window, I said "we need to talk", knowing he must have been caught, he said he couldn't talk at the moment, in a louder voice I said "NOW, outside." When we met outside of the room, I let him know what I thought, I'm not a yeller but those on the receiving end of one of my talks know I mean business, index finger punctuating my points from time to time, pointing to his chin, never breaking eye contact, except for when he stared at his shoes, reminding him to "look at me when I'm talking to you doc". In time the "doctor" attempted to scurry away shaking and white in the face, only to get a "C'mere, you're not finished", he was convinced to apologize to my grandmother for his behaviour. My grandmother gave him a pass on the matter, accepting his hand when he offered it to her, and accepting his apology, but not me as I simply reminded him to "keep in mind what we talked about". In an odd twist, the lab tech who had been assisting the doctor gave me a smile and a thumbs up sign as she walked away, a quick conversation down the hall convinced her to agree to phone me if there was any other sort of problem, she mentioned that the doctor was commonly rude to patients and hospital workers alike. It took only one letter from the family attorney (sent to show the seriousness by which we regarded the incident) to receive word that the doctor had previous complaints from patients and their families (which I already knew) and would be dealt with, we never saw him again, and we never again left my grandmother alone in that room. After the talk, I returned to my grandmother's bedside, the image of her smile at that moment remains with me to this day. She never mentioned the matter or complained, as that was not her way (the woman was a saint), but her smile made it all worthwhile. I miss her with all my heart.

Anyhow, sheesh, sorry for reliving that moment and subjecting all of you to all of that, *LOL just that was one example of a bad doctor I personally encountered, the words just spilled out as I remembered. Here's a link to the news story of a similar "doc gone bad" or "bad-side manner".
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9135728/

I believe that it is too often that we give these glorified "mechanics" (afterall, that is what they are, just as a mechanic learns the parts of a car, how they work and how to fix it, a doctor does much the same but with the workings of the human body) too much leeway to do as they please, and behave in a distasteful manner. Doctors can't be penalized for having bad bedside manner, though that wouldn't be a bad idea to change that rule. Forced courtesy is better than no courtesy at all, and simply making it through medical school doesn't necessarily mean they'll make good doctors, it just shows that they were good at being a student.

Let us know about your stories, encounters, or what you think about the matter. I know I can't be alone in my dislike for the direction health care seems to be going.