Does Being Informed Mean That You Are Obnoxious?

CNN Health News reported a while back that a Dr David Golden had fired a patient because he had the audacity to ask about possible side effects of a medication that he had prescribed.

Admittedly, I don’t know the attitude of the patient when asking the question about the medication.

It bugs me though when an ‘expert’ in a given field can’t listen, or is so arrogant as to think that they know it all.

I shudder with fear when they take the drug companies’ word about their products!

There have been lots of articles about the influence that drug companies have on doctors when it comes to prescription drugs.

This article was written in 2006, and is the first on a list that I found by doing a search.

I know that doctors are indeed the experts, but then again, they aren’t the ones who are going to end up being the victims of wrongly prescribed medications.

Consumers need to be aware of what compounds can make them sick, and/or affect their performance at work.

For instance, many cough mixtures can make you drowsy, and if someone operates machinery or drives during their work hours, they don’t want to be nodding off.

Sometimes doctors are busy, and don’t think to ask relevant questions when writing prescriptions and treating patients.

I remember years ago when our kids were younger, one of them had a very high temperature and wasn’t drinking.

The doctor said that unless she started drinking within 12 – 24 hours, he’d have to hospitalize her, and put her intravenous fluids.

I called into a service station on the way home and fueled the car, all the time thinking God, how do I get this kid to drink?

On my way to the counter, I grabbed a packet of salted crackers for my daughter.

As soon as we got home, she had a drink. She kept eating the crackers, and drinking.

The next day the doctor asked me how I had got her to drink.

After hearing my explanation, he shook his head, smiled and said ‘That was so simple…’

Members of the medical profession aren’t the only one that has this problem of ‘obnoxious clients’.

A lot of teachers and journalists that I know have the same sort of attitude.

A couple of years ago, my daughter was on ‘work experience’ in a press office.

She called me and asked me: ‘…how I do I write a press release…?’

I said you should have learned that, and she replied that she had, but none of her releases were being used.

I went step by step through the process with her, and the next press release that she wrote was used.

When she returned to college, she was, of course, told that she had done it the wrong way.

I guess that when you’ve spent years and a lot of money becoming an ‘expert’, the last thing that you want to see is an ‘uneducated’ person showing you up.

I still remember the reaction of my doctor though, who told me later that using salted crackers or something similar has become one of his recommendations (when suitable) before resorting to further treatment.

I’m not a doctor, or a journalist, or even a teacher, but I believe in keeping myself well informed.

The questions that I ask a professional of any sort are polite, not intended to belittle, but to to gain understanding.

If they can’t accept that, then I guess that they have a problem

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A Very Important Note

I related the medical experience of my daughter above.

Please note that I was in constant contact with our doctor, and that she was old enough to suck/chew on these crackers.

In relating this experience, I was not recommending this as a course of treatment.

There may be circumstances where this is unsuitable, dangerous, or both.

Please speak to your health professional before trying any remedies that you read about online…