Does the medical profession ridiculously disparage their own?
I cannot tell you how many times I have heard physicians (people with an MD) refer to other types of MDs as “fake doctors.” The two most commonly cited groups I hear this about is psychiatrists and physiatrists. Psychiatry is put down because they see “mental health patients” and do not perform surgery. Physiatrists (who are rehabilitation medicine doctors) are often put down because some of the elitist physicians consider it too easy.
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{ 3 comments }
That’s really too bad. As a medical malpractice defense attorney, I can’t tell you how many of these lawsuits get filed because one doctor has to badmouth the care provided by another doctor.
Worse, disparaging remarks are as likely as not to come from practitioners whose own care and skill is hardly above reproach. It is a disservice to patients to cause the kind of confusion and suspicion that professional disparagement usually results in the patient.
If a doctor knows a patient has been mistreated by another doctor he can call that doctor directly, he can go to the medical staff director if it is hospital-related or the state medical society or he can report the action to the state medical board. Of course, all those actions have the requirement that some objective facts justify a complaint, something more substantive than personal animus or the wish to disadvantage a physician practice competitor. Using a patient’s trust to those latter ends is wrongful and unprofessional itself.
Sometimes a gentle suggestion such as “I know how happy you are with Dr. X, and that is important, but in matters like yours, sometimes it is best to get a second opinion if for nothing better than to be certain you have heard another doctor with the same expertise tell you that what Dr. X suggests is the best course of action.”
The physician who disparages another doctor, no matter how justified that criticism might be, is not really holding the interests of his patient’s welfare above his own emotions. We all ought to try to do better.
doctors with MD’s or DO’s who put down other doctors are probably the worse thing that could happen to our profession. but i dont worry, what goes around usually comes around. these doctors will get their “reward” someday, and it wont be pretty.
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