Very eye opening article….

I’ve almost written this blog 100 times and stopped myself because I try my best not to touch things that are super controversial, but I can quiet my heart no more.

I have no idea when this culture shift happened and only half understand why it happened, but I find myself completely disgusted with people vilifying medical doctors. There I said it. Every time I turn on the news or scroll through my newsfeed I see something about some medicine, vitamin, vaccine, or medical intervention that doctors are either forcing on you to harm you or not telling you about to harm you. The theme is the same everytime. “Do not trust doctors. They have an agenda.”

In full disclosure, I’m married to a resident physician (or as my humbling nephew Hunter called him, a beginner doctor) and my father is a surgeon. And by nature of my husband being a resident many of our closest friends are also doctors so maybe it is easier for me to have a higher opinion of doctors than most, but here are the things that get to me.

Firstly, do you have a medical degree? Do you person writing propaganda that successfully sways the heart of Americans have a medical degree? No. You never see “those” articles, and I know you know the ones, written by people with medical degrees. Ever. Yet somehow, everyday Americans cling to their words like they are the gospel truth and use them as ammo against their own doctors. What is that about? I was there through four grueling years of medical school. It was intense to say the least. I can remember watching Matt study like his life depended on it. I watched him lose weight and turn sort of a strange green color as he spent months in the gross anatomy lab learning each and every part of the human body. I can remember the joy on his face the first time he came home from his family medicine rotation when he realized that this might be the “specialty” for him. And now I watch him work hours that are not normal to any normal people while joyfully learning the art and science of medicine. So please, please, please, stop treating doctors like they are dumb. They have given up at a minimum SEVEN years of their lives to work harder than the rest of us will ever have to work so that can confidently and safely take care of you. I know that you feel like they are misinformed and lied to by whoever is doing the lying today, but I promise you that they are smart and dedicated individuals who spend a lot of their free time reading about all of the most up-to-date medical information and are more than willing to talk with you about the miracle weight loss pill that you saw on Dr. Oz. They are not dumb. Give them a chance.

Phew. I think my blood pressure is rising as I type.

Secondly, and this is the one that gets to me the most, there is no conspiracy in which doctors are trying to poison you or withhold a miracle cancer diet or whatever else the internet says. I know this might sound crazy, but most of the doctors that I know are genuinely caring people. I know. How can that be right? Well they are. Remember how hard I said they worked? In my experiences, most doctors went into medicine because they wanted to help people. It’s really simple. I know this because I’ve been out to dinner with a group of doctors and their families and seen one of them run out to answer a phone call about a patient that they’ve been worried about all night. I’ve seen them crying about a bad outcome for a patient and going over the record again and again to see if there was something they missed that they shouldn’t have. I’ve seen my own husband pull out his ipad at 10 pm just to double check the “up-to-date” article on something and make sure he gave his patient the best treatment available for something as benign as a persistent upper respiratory infection. And sadly, I’ve been the therapist for him the days when he had to look a patient in the eye and tell them it was time to look into hospice and that their days were numbered. These people care. They care enough to not keep the magical cancer diet from you. There is no conspiracy. They are people who work a lot, sacrifice a lot, and do it because they want to be there with you in the joyful moments when you deliver your baby and the hardest moments when you had another miscarriage and you’re crying in the exam room.

Thirdly, their families care too. We sacrifice a lot for those “dumb conspirators” to take care of people. We are cheering you on as we hear the good news and crying with you when we hear of the tragedies. Even my four year old has started to pray for “daddy’s patients” when daddy can’t be home with us to say goodnight. Should I be offended when I read the latest article about the entire medical community trying to take over the world one vaccination at a time? No. I should keep scrolling, but the truth is that I can’t help but feel a little sadness that this is the world that our doctors have to practice medicine in.

And lastly (because fourthly sounds odd and I should stop), they cannot cure you of damage you have done to yourself. They cannot undo 25 years of smoking with a magic pill. They cannot force you to eat right and exercise when you’re 20 so that you’ll be healthy when you’re 50. They cannot guarantee that you will live pain free and disease free for your entire life.

Is the state of healthcare broken? Yes. Does your doctor agree? Yes. So please let’s stop vilifying them about it. Be careful who you put your trust in, and if you have children, pretty pretty please with sugar on top, please seek out the opinion of an actual medical doctor before making decisions regarding their health and well-being. I can be a tad bit hippy trippy in my own life, and while Matt may occasionally roll his eyes at me, he is always willing to hear me out and talk it over.

Doctors are not dumb. They are not misinformed (except about the fact that I think a fever should start before 100.5. My kids feel bad long before 100.5). They are not in it for the money because believe me it ain’t worth it. So next time you feel compelled to share some new internet smear campaign against the medical community, reconsider. Check the facts. Talk to your doctor.

Please excuse me while I step off my soapbox.

I’m done. 😉

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