Doctor Diagnosis - Does Your Doctor Suffer from Sports Car Syndrome?

Whenever I need to visit a doctor or a GP, the first thing I look for is if there is a fancy sports car in the Doctor's parking spot in the car park.

As strange as that may sound, I now immediately (when scanning the parking lot) predict to myself what standard of treatment or care I am likely to receive a few minutes/hours later.

This article is based purely on personal opinion, experience and observation and in no way does it attempt to sully the medical profession or do a disservice to the multitude of great doctors (there is one even mentioned below) and medical personnel that I believe are out there!

What is my beef with doctors? I know doctors are under immense pressure from both their superiors and an endless stream of patients but, often, it seems this has affected their ability to express basic people skills of compassion and care. Career seems to have silenced calling in many cases and it can appear to us normal' folk that doctors are more interested in rolling up to work in their flashy Doctor-mobile that they have conveniently placed right in the eye line of every passing patient.

"Here we go again", I think, "another spin on the quick conveyor belt of dismissive diagnosis!"

This is not a new feeling for me but the passion has been reignited recently with the treatment of my wife over the past month. After a day of walking, my wife got home to find her lower legs and feet swollen, shiny and feeling tight. Thinking nothing of it at first, she awoke the next morning to find them much worse.

Dilemma one was deciding whether to wait until Monday morning to see a doctor or visit Accident and Emergency more urgently. A & E was the decision when my wife became distressed and after several hours, the doctor dismissed her with antibiotics for a mystery infection of the leg.

A week later when the infection had worsened, a GP appointment was made with similar results, the doctor didn't really know what the condition was and gave instructions to finish the antibiotics and to come back if it got worse (which is of course what we had just done). A clean bill of health was issued for vacation travel.

The most alarming thing, apart from an actual lack of diagnosis and the terrifying realisation that neither had actually checked her blood pressure, despite information regarding family history of heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes, was the apparent dismissive nature of the "professionals" themselves. A lack of interest, almost as if they couldn't wait to get home to their sports cars and playstations!

A few days later, we were in a tiny town in Greece and my wife sat by the pool with a foot that had ballooned on the flight and was worsening. The only doctor (and his wife assistant) in town stayed open especially to see us and took five minutes to relay to my wife that she was suffering from high blood pressure, edema in both legs and an infection! Medication for each was prescribed and within a couple of days my wife felt much better and the swelling had practically vanished.

As instructed by the very helpful and "pro active" Greek doctor, my wife immediately saw a doctor on return home, where the Greek doc's diagnosis was confirmed, but that all the medication he had prescribed was to be thrown in the garbage while blood work was undertaken.

As per instructions, medication was stopped. The two weeks waiting for test results has commenced and ALL symptoms, pain and discomfort are BACK. When asked what to do if this happened, the response my wife received was a shrug of the shoulders!

Many years ago when I was seeking a Doctors note for a few days off work for a stress related illness, he told me that I should just get on with it and that he wished he didn't have to go to work every day either. Solid advice, possibly, but is apathy and lack of enthusiasm for the job going to instil the public with confidence in their doctors?

A plea to Doctors: I acknowledge the tremendously difficult job you have, the immense pressure you are often under and the often miraculous results you achieve but how much extra must you give to add a little empathy and gentleness into the mix?

Please realise that the majority of people who come to visit you are genuinely and generally concerned (and often afraid) about their own well being. Try to be gentle, and perhaps bring your less sporty car to work!