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What Drives Your Doctor Nuts about You

interesting perspective from doctor's point of view:

(excerpted from http://www.medpagetoday.com/PracticeManagement/PracticeManagement/1...) "The most frustrating thing for me is patients whose lifestyle is making them miserable but they won't change it," Dr. Green said.

He said many problems, such as sleep apnea and chronic tiredness, can be attributed to eating too much and moving too little. In that case, the treatment isn't disease, but "lack of health."

Views: 120

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Permalink Reply by KAREN JAFFE on June 30, 2009 at 5:45pm
My doctor can't seem to understand why I am still tired all of the time. Since I am using CPAP she thinks I should never be tired during the day.
Permalink Reply by Richard Morgan on June 30, 2009 at 5:52pm
And some of us older ones don't overeat, but have a very slow metabolism. Some doctors narrow mindedness and lack of nutritional knowledge is frustrating to me.
Permalink Reply by bonesigh on June 30, 2009 at 7:22pm
Hello all. Just thought I would comment on what is being said about patients not following through. I truly believe that most patients want to follow through but lack the energy, the discipline, the motivation to follow through expressly BECAUSE of their health issues, depression, etc. even though they know they need to. I know it's asking too much but it would be so nice if the doctors could lend a helping hand with follow up phone calls. If we don't contact you, you take a caring proactive stance and call US, ask us how we are!

Rock Hinkle said:
We have heard all about what frustrates the pts Dan. I think this piece has some good things to say. the majority of pts are not as proactive as the people on this site. lets be honest only a small % of the members here are even that proactive. it is very frustrating to spend your time, paid or not, knowing that the pt is not going to follow through with improving their health. Besides everyone on this site has been given a chance to voice their frustrations. We should allow and respect their opinions as well.

Dan if we make medical negligence criminal then by all means we should do the same to everyone elses jobs. it would not be fare to just do it to the medical industry. Should we hold the auto workers responsible also? How about your job? To error is human, but the next time you do we are going to fine you. how about people whom are given proper medical advice and choose not to follow it. Should we throw them in jail too?

Dan Lyons said:
The question needs to be reversed actually. What about the doctor frustrates the patient? Maybe they might learn something.
Permalink Reply by Judy on June 30, 2009 at 7:50pm
The average general practitioner (family doctor) today has 2500 patients in his practice.
Permalink Reply by Dan Lyons on June 30, 2009 at 8:39pm
Lets apply some conservative numbers to this.

Using an 8-hour day, 5 days a week, 260 working days a year.

Applying a 15-minute interval for actual patient time with the physician, they would see 32 patients a day.

At an average of $100.00 for the 15 minutes of their valuable time, equals $3200.00 a day, times 260 days for the year makes the tidy sum of $832,000.00.

Now lets add in the hospital rounds, if they do that any more, any lab work or diagnostic consults profits they might do. Just for the sake of a round number, let's say an easy million. Figuring 1/3 of it for overhead, they pocket close to $666,000.00.

Now based on the average number of patients they have of 2500 means they would see each patient 3.328 times a year.

Granted they have expenses, but that's still a hefty sun they are pocketing each year to complain about their bread and butter.

These are conservative numbers.


Judy said:
The average general practitioner (family doctor) today has 2500 patients in his practice.
Permalink Reply by Richard Neider on June 30, 2009 at 9:00pm
Lets remember that we are all humans. We are all different. Doctors are no exception. Some are good, some are not so good, and some are terrible. But what do we do without the medical profession when we get sick? Find a good doctor and stick with him or her. Don't like your doctor, find a new one. Follow your doctors advice or don't go to one for advice. I've had good and bad experiences with medical doctors, but I still go to one for my health needs because there is no alternative. Bashing the doctors does not cure any illness I know of. If you do not trust your doctor, find a new one.
Permalink Reply by Judy on June 30, 2009 at 9:15pm
Well, lets see: does anyone have any idea what the cost of college is to attain an MD?? No speciality per se, just a general/family practitioner.

Tuition loans to be paid off. Then, due to paperwork alone today's doctor needs 4-5 office staff - and their salaries. Rental of office space. Malpractice insurance. *sigh*

My family doctor bills $70 for an office call but only gets paid $59.32.
Permalink Reply by Wylie Miller on June 30, 2009 at 10:57pm
I have two thoughts in response. I should preface this by saying we are talking about obstructive sleep apnea, not central nervous system apnea (or a combination). Most of us never knew we had apnea. It was our sleep partners that knew we stopped breathing during sleep. Most patients seen by doctors have had apnea for years. When you are tired it leads to a sedentary life, and bad eating habits follow. My first point is: it should be simple to show that the airway collapses in sleep apnea patients. It is not fatty tissues that collapse (certainly obesity exacerbates it). Secondly, doctors are driven crazy by patients who have destructive life patterns like alcoholism or obesity. Doctors think they should just be able to explain the health risks and that is that. They fail to take into consideration the strong psychological payoffs of these behaviors, with little such payoff if one simply starts doing what doctors think is healthy. It seems very ignorant does it not that doctors would be so shallow? A patient's health and healing requires far more than simple diagnosis and patient education. Doctors have never helped with alcoholism; it took AA and the big book to provide healing. Doctors fail consistently with obesity because they won't learn the psychological dimensions or involve the health professionsals that could.
Permalink Reply by Judy on June 30, 2009 at 11:13pm
To say NOTHING about how many doctors themselves are chubby, fat and obese.
Permalink Reply by RockRpsgt on July 1, 2009 at 3:42am
if it were not for a few good Docs most of us would still be walking zombies! No one answereed my question yet. What have you done to make the profession better other than moan about it. How many of you have supported the "Sleep Awareness Bill". With all the negative energy that it took many of you to post on this discussion how many letters could have been written? How many phone calls could have been made.
Permalink Reply by Judy on July 1, 2009 at 7:56am
Come now, Rock HInkle, you don't really think I would pass up the opportunity to complain to my "politicos", do you??
Permalink Reply by RockRpsgt on July 1, 2009 at 8:00am
No Judy, I did not LOL. How the hell are ya!?

Judy said:
Come now, Rock HInkle, you don't really think I would pass up the opportunity to complain to my "politicos", do you??

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