This thread is dedicated to the good doctors and health care pros.

The majority of which are competent and really care about people and work very long hours under a lot of stress and bureaucracy.

One would be my primary care physician. He's one of the best physicians I have ever had the pleasure to see.

He is one of the very few doctors in my area who is experienced in treating HIV infection and has been since the mid-80's. When I first was diagnosed with HIV, even though his patient load and he wasn't taking anymore patients he agree to take me on as a patient anyway. He made first contact with me after getting a call from the very professional woman at the public health clinic who had the job of letting me know my HIV test came back positive and counseling me on my next steps to get treatment.

He always takes the time to discuss options and listens to me and treats me as a partner in my own health care. When I wanted to try an experimental treatment to boost my t-cell count, he read the information on the treatment I provided him with and agreed to give it a shot on our own if we couldn't get in on a clinical trial. He prescribed what I needed and followed up with me along the way.

This week, on my bi-annual visit he suggested a switch in my meds if my bloodwork comes back okay that would reduce my pill burden to two meds once daily, which would mean for the first time in 5 years I might actually get to sleep in.

He also provided me with information in this visit to assist in lowering my borderline high cholesterol levels to reasonable levels.

And he did all that despite the fact that the receptionists up front were telling everyone they were running about a half-hour behind.

I'd also like to thank pharmacist who took the time to order and advise me on how to reconstitute and inject that experimental treatment I was using and cautioned me about the various side-effects I could expect (which sucked to no end, let me tell you).

WTF! Just because you found one out of a thousand, you lose all logic? They're thugs who take our health away under the excuse that they need yet another expensive car or house. Sorry, you need to think about the dozens you probably know that are scum before you use the word majority.

I think most people who become doctors do so because they truly want to help people.

And I notice you left out the MAJORITY of non-doctor health care professionals that do a great job and aren't particularly well paid: Nurses, medical assistants, x-ray techs, pharmacy techs, anesthesioligists, lab technicians, phlebotomists, physical therapists, dietians, and the all the rest.

everyone who does the doctor's job. (at least, whenever i've seen the doctor. "turn your head and cough" and the nurse does the rest.)

i salute them all. (partially bc i don't want the nurses getting the idea that i don't like them...:D)

over 400.

MOST doctors are great professionals who have their patients' best interests at heart and often become not only physicians but family counselors and patient advocates.

That they are rewarded well for their hard work should NOT be an issue and anyone making blanket statements as a whole about ALL physicians such as you just did should spend ONE DAY working in an emergency room.

While there ARE bad doctors out there, they accont for NO MORE than 15% of the total system and that is backed up by advocacy studies both for and against reforms.

I don't share your opinion.

It sounds to me like you have had a bad situation and now paint them all with the same brush.

YOUR anectdotal evidence trumps the orginal poster's? Whatever. :eyes:

I've had the great good fortune to have been the recipient of excellent, truly compassionate care; without these marvelous men and women, my life would be very different than it is, and I bless them for choosing to be 'healers', and not merely 'doctors'.

:D

Although I don't have the health issues facing me that you do, I do have other areas that need the attention of my Dr. Most dr's I know work long hard hours in a thankless position.
My husband was hospitalized a couple of years ago and his surgeon often came by after long days in surgery to see how he was, didn't matter that it was usually 11pm or later!
I am facing surgery on March 15th. The surgeon holds my life in his hands. For four hours or more I will depend on him to work skillfully, then for years to come he will provide follow up care.

My hat's off to the Dr and nurses who provide the medical expertise they were trained in to a vastly ungrateful population.

:hi:

that's my 2 cents.

she is a caring, beautiful and tireless woman. it took interviewing about thirty people to find her.
i love my doctor, and my mom's doctor is an angel as well as a brilliant man. I don't know what I would have done without him for the past five years. it should be like this for everyone, really. but i did a lot of research to find them, and it's paid off bigtime.

:-)