Joel R. Cooper is a family physician who blogs at his self-titled site, Dr. Joel Cooper and on Twitter @joelrcooper.
It’s a widely held belief that eventually all living human doctors will be replaced by robots. Some say as soon as 2035.
I say, “Why wait? Replace me now!”
If the idea of a robot diagnosing and treating — and examining — you and your loved ones seems objectionable, please reconsider.
There are actually several advantages of robots over so-called “human” doctors:
Doctors are prone to burnout. If a robot burns out, just replace …
1. You don’t have to make an appointment with your doctor, or sit in a crowded waiting room for hours, to get music — you can just download it instantly from iTunes or pick up an instrument and play it.
2. Music costs far less than a medical office co-pay or out-of-pocket fee-for-service charge. And for many acute conditions, outcomes are probably pretty …
Here is the attitude of ER physicians: “Here are a few pills to hold you out for one or two days. Follow up with your PCP — he or she should be managing your chronic pain — not me. Now get out of my ER!”
Here is the attitude of PCPs: “I simply don’t have the time or expertise to manage chronic …
Most of the doctors I know went into medicine because they really truly wanted to help people. But medicine, long honored as a calling as well as a profession, is facing some tough new challenges. Many doctors are disillusioned or simply burnt out. Others have accepted their fates as interchangeable provider units.
The name of the game today is efficiency — i.e., …
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