Perfection M.D.

I watched House this week...first time in close to a year. I really like the show but here's what drives me crazy about medical dramas...they're not real. Excuse me for being a cynic for a moment but the fact of the matter is--Doctors do not know everything! I'm sorry for having committed this grevious error but in my opinion Doctors receive too much unadulterated trust. Example, someone goes to the doctor and expects that she/he will be able to tell them exactly what is wrong with them and what to do about it, and they expect this on their first visit. The truth is, while in many cases this is true, it isn't always. In some cases it takes a long time, my dad went through tests for about three years before they found out that he had a gluten intolerance. A friend of mine has been seeing doctors for two years and has undergone every test imaginible for a stomach problem to no avail. The funny thing is that when the doctor is unable to find the solution we say "oh...it must be psychosomatic" or "maybe it hasn't been discovered yet" assigning the lack of answers to either the friend's obviously poor state of mental health (which up until this point we thought was great) or to the offbeat chance that your friend has some yet-to-be-discovered illness.

My aunt is a professor at the University of Illinois (I put this in so you know that she's competent), a couple of years back she was having some health problems, when the doctors couldn't figure out what it was many of her family members decided it was psychosomatic. How interesting that when a stranger with a piece of paper on his wall (and several years of training) says that he doesn't know what it is that we automatically believe our friend/cousin/sister/brother/parent is going a little wacky! Turns out my aunt wasn't wacky she just had to find the right doctor. The truth was...she just has some health problems 'gasp!'.

Anyway, I think that this is mostly due to American's belief that science can solve everything and that scientists already know everything which, if it was true, Dr. Coyne probably wouldn't have a job. In addition, and more relevant to the class, is my belief that another large part of the problem is caused by our wonderful medical dramas, which of course show us only the most dramatic of experiences, because who would want to watch anything else? When it comes to M.D.s I think we could allow for a little more scrutiny and a lot more reality. Not because I have anything against Doctos personally but rather because they're human too. Perhaps this would solve the mal-practice insurance debacle, which would mean doctors wouldn't need to charge as much and patients would ask for more realistic care (meaning they wouldn't request every possible and unnecessary drug/treatment combo) thereby reducing healthcare costs and allowing everyone to receive affordable health care!

Darn you Doogie Howser!