Trust for Doctors

[miguel]

I am pretty sure I'm not the only one but does anyone have a lack of trust for doctors?


I've been called out by friends and family for distrust for doctors. I personally see them as professionals who, like everyone else, want to make as much money as they can. I have heard stories of misdiagnosis and unnecessary procedures for the sake of making money off patients which has contributed to my distrust for medical professionals, not to mention my knowledge of creepy, twisted medical procedures from back in the day, like lobotomies, electric shock therapy and using heroin and cocaine as medicine.


I know this is a dangerous mentality, especially if faced with a serious medial condition. As a border-line hypochondriac, I have the tenancy to exhaust all my efforts into reading about things I observe with my body before seeking medical attention, which by the way I will only do if I'm forced to.


Does anyone else have this feel the same way about medical professionals?

 

[DDNatureLover]

I don't generally have a distrust of doctors or other healthcare providers. I think many do go into it because they want to help others, but nowadays, it's natural that people also go into it to make money, because it costs a lot of money to attend university and then medical school. I can remember when things were different, and insurance companies seemed to provide a better experience. At that time, the doctors weren't as harried, but these days, it's all about the money, more so I would say on the part of insurers, because they control how much doctors get paid. Setting limits on pay means that in order to be able to pay expenses and make a little money for themselves, doctors these days are stressed out trying to squeeze in as many patients as possible, and in some cases, the visits barely seem to last 5 minutes. I didn't see much of the actual doctor on my last ER visit, although I saw technicians and nurses off and on. I've worked with doctors in the past, and had a lot of respect for those ones, although i'm not thrilled with the doctor I see personally. I do believe he's in it for the money, but he's pretty flexible with appointments, and will fit me in when I need an appointment, so I am sticking with him for now.


I think you should look around at reviews and ask people you know for references before seeing a doctor, and try to find the one who will best fit your needs. I'd also be cautious about letting the distrust show, because I'm sure that would be offensive to a doctor, although I'm sure they see their share of it.

 

[taco]

I had a big mistrust of my psychiatrists until I finally got one that I felt was truly working to help me and not just cashing a paycheck and prescribing more meds. I think it is because we share such private personal information with them, we basically lay our lives bare in front of them, so there is a definite trust thing going on there. Also I find it hard to trust most people, so I suppose it is just normal for me.

 

[111kg]

It depends. Here in Romania, the family doctors, at least most of them, are poorly trained. Most of them don't even remember some basic anatomy stuff. However, especially in larger hospitals, I have never met an incompetent doctor. It's true that some of them may be rude, but at least they'll do their job. We have to understand them, as most of them are overworked and have relationship problems with their spouses.


I do know one thing for sure: if they are poorly trained, they can't be kept on their jobs, no matter who their father might be, simply because they may be an insanely bad liability for the hospital.

 

[kelden]

Well, if you distrust a doctor for a treatment that you feel is only approved by your doctor for money purpose, you can always go to see another doctor. Truly, only trust the truth that comes from their experience and trade, not the person, they spent 7 years in college to be eligible for a degree of the most rigorous career ever.

 

[EntropiaAddict]

I have met with doctors that I did not trust at all and with ones that I trusted a lot. Remember, the twisted medical practices back in the day were cutting edge technology and most of those doctors truly felt that they were helping people. Of course, as others have said, there are doctors out there that are just looking to make money, but I have found that I typically don't feel this way about psychologists. Of course, part of this could be because I see VA doctors and everything is 100% covered, so they don't make extra money by prescribing me medication or anything.


A friend of mine is fond of saying things like: "If you want your child to get braces, take them to an orthodontist often enough and they will tell you the child needs braces." Basically, if you see a specialist, they will eventually tell you that you need whatever they specialize in. For mental health doctors, psychologists are not allowed to prescribe medication, that is a job for psychiatrists. A healthy concern over whether or not the professional you are seeing is in it for the money or to help people is a good thing. Hopefully, if you feel that way about a doctor and ask to see a different one, you will eventually find one that you feel is truly trying to help you.

 

[hades_leae]

I do, I know that they have a job to do, and they make more money when they have patients. If you are a doctor and you rely on patients, then misdiagnosing them will be of interest for your bank account. That's just the way a capitalist economy is.


Everything has to be monetized for the GDP, and even where there doesn't need to be conflict of interest, that doesn't matter anymore. People will do what they need to do for money.


That's why I never take a doctors advice like I would've 30 years ago when it really mattered and doctors weren't in it for the money. People are fine, I hate that there are thousands of things you can be diagnosed with, and thousands of different subscriptions that can be given out.

 

[John Snort]

I've had the same doctor most of my life. Maybe when he's too old I'll probably to find another doctor I can trust. So since this doctor has been the one treating me since I was a kid, I trust him. If you have a distrust for doctors, apart from trying to get a second opinion about a diagnosis, you should try to find a doctor you actually can trust.

 

[Alex]

It's hard to find a doctor you can trust, and because you don't know whether they are right or not it's hard to tell. I think that's why people do prefer referrals and reputations mean a lot in the field and the same goes for hospitals.


When it comes to mental health, some doctors are more understanding and others seem to hand out pills only. Finding one that will listen and who will refer you for therapy can be hard too, and you may have to try a few of them. In the UK you have a named doctor, but you can specify who you wish to see. My dad only trusts his own doctor, but even he made an error and dad ended up in hospital when something was missed.

 

[pwarbi]

It feels like that these days less and less people are trusting their doctors, and while I can see why, especially here in the UK where they have been subjected to that many cutbacks it's almost impossible for them to do their jobs like they once could, if you can't trust your own doctor then who can you trust? A doctor or a nurse used to be more of a vocation than just a job, but now it feels like a lot of the time when you go to the doctor they aren't interested in helping, but more concerned with getting you in and out of the office as fast as possible so they can get the next patient in, and so that isn't going to help the situation either.


Also, when it comes to dealing with anxiety and depression, a lot of doctors aren't qualified to treat those conditions and so the first thing (and sometimes only thing) they do is refer you to a counsellor and that in itself can give you a feeling that they don't care and can't be trusted when in reality they are just trying to cover their own backs because they don't have the knowledge to deal with you.

 

[Sue]

I had a family doctor for many years that I completely trusted. He always made sure I had the best of treatment and if he was unsure of something or wanted a second option he would always set up an appointment with a specialist in whatever the problem was. Sadly he developed ALS and gave up his practice. He passed away at a very young age. Since that time I have not had a family doctor. Whenever I am sick now I have to go to a walk in clinic or the ER. I have little faith in the doctors there because every time you go you see a different doctor. I end up having to go back time and time again for the same problem and each doctor has a different diagnosis. It is very frustrating. I have little faith in them so when they give me prescriptions to take I am very hesitate about taking them. I had to get a prescription a few weeks back and when I went to get it the pharmacist couldn't even read what the doctor had written down. It made me wonder if I even got the right medication.

 

[woodpeck]

I have a really bad distrust for doctors. I have a medical phobia as well as hypochondria, which is a cocktail nobody wants to see, ever, really. My current GP is so good and he's the first doctor I've ever trusted possibly in my entire life, but I just moved out of area and I have to change GP once I've begun counselling and I'm so scared about that. What if the new person doesn't 'get it'? Doctors sometimes seem to be pushy and insist that you're talking nonsense even when it makes so much sense to you. I get scared telling people symptoms about myself because what if they think I'm making it up for attention?


There's a line in a song by Amanda Palmer..


"And now to dress the wounds calls into question


How authentic they are


There is always someone criticizing me


She just likes playing hospital"


I think of that every time I go in to talk about something that's worrying me because that's how I get treated often enough. It sucks. It really, really sucks.

 

[Laneorexorcist]

This idea hadn't crossed my mind before, but actually, a few months ago, my sister had a really expensive and hard surgery and when she asked for a second opinion, she realized that this doctor only wanted to get the money out of her and at the end of the day she didn't need the surgery. That was so shocking for me! I hadn't met a doctor who actually cheated people in order to get money, that idea just seemed too far away from my reality, I guess. But on the other hand, I was kind of dumb to not think like that about doctors, they are people, and just as people, there are a lot of varieties of them, not all are good and not all of them are bad.

 

[deanyd_17]

I feel much the same way, except here in Canada I don't have to worry about them just being in it for the money. They're not trying to gouge me since we have universal healthcare.


What worries me is incompetence. I've seen it a number of times in the small town that I live in. I work with teens and one time we brought in one of our guys who was suffering from pain in his wrist after falling on it. We saw the doctor twice for it, he prescribed tylenol. The third time we brought him in a different doctor had him x-rayed and found that he had broken it.


Then there was my wife when she was pregnant. Pain in her stomach, more than she could bear. Was doubled over in pain almost every night. When we went in to see the doctor they gave her some digestive stuff and sent us away. Third time in we asked them to get in touch with her obstetrician in a nearby city. She said to bring her in immediately to the larger hospital. She ended up having to have her gall bladder taken out.


If you ever have doubts about your doctor, ask for a second opinion!

 

[Ashley0323]

I do have a lack of trust for doctors. They are human, just like everyone else. After a long shift, all they want to do is go home, but if they are busy they cant always leave. If they are so ready to leave they arent always focused on the details and misdiagnosing happens. It happened to me three times, in a row.

 

[ReadmeByAmy]

It is not that I do not trust a doctor but what had happened to our mother before where there is a wrong diagnosis and wrong medication that almost put her into a bad state of health my trust had lessened. That is why it is better that we should always seek for a second opinion rather than first diagnosis we will be comfortable at once for the sake of getting well also at once.

 

[AlysBunny]

I trust my doctors, generalists and specialists, as much as I trust any other professional giving me advice. This means that I remember they're human and can make mistakes. Their diagnosis is based on their experiences and education, how well I have communicated my symptoms, and any tests they have done. It's also based at least partially on what's most likely, the statistics - because if you hear hoof beats it's more likely to be a horse than a zebra. Humans can make mistakes, which in doctors can mean misdiagnosis. Sometimes it really is a zebra. Sometimes a doctor is complacent or rushed or restricted by insurance and didn't do the test that could have revealed the mistake. It's my job as my own primary caretaker, to ask questions, request tests, advocate for myself, and sometimes get that second opinion. And insurance here in the US can create major hurdles for a doctor, making it difficult to get the needed tests covered and making the doctors rushed because lower and lower payments make it necessary to see more patients in a shorter amount of time.


I think this is sometimes taken as a lack of respect for their education. Some doctors really hate to be questioned, especially the very new doctors and the very old doctors. The new ones sometimes lack confidence and the older ones came from a time when doctors were treated as infallible. They've never been infallible; they're educated professionals, not god. People are more educated now and understand that medicine is science, not mystery, so they ask more questions. I think that's right and good.

 

[Norjak71]

I do because I feel like I can diagnose myself way better, which of course I know is not true but mainly it comes out of a fear for doctor's office's as well.

 

[theduck7]

It depends on the situation. I think going to a doctor when you are ill is usually quite helpful but sometimes they just can't find what the problem is. If you feel like you aren't getting proper care from a doctor then it's time to get a second opinion or even a third opinion. It doesn't hurt to do some research on your own but doctors do want to help you when you are sick.

 

[Panic57]

I don't really distrust doctors as much as I distrust nurses. My mom was in the hospital for a bad infection of her leg. She's been tested by a doctor before the infection for diabetes and they told her that she doesn't have it. The nurses messed with her medicine and her numbers so much that the doctors were convinced that she had diabetes even though she was fighting both the infection (which messes with your normal numbers0 and the medicine. After my mom left the hospital for two weeks and came back, she check fine for not having diabetes, she's just anemic because she doesn't produce enough potassium. When she has enough potassium, her numbers are normal. Personally, the most dangerous people in the hospital are the nurses playing doctor because you see them way more than you see the doctors.