The doctor's "understanding"... give me a break. lol Look, there’s actually a formal term for this—it's called "clinical indication for referral." Determining if you need a specific test is literally what they get paid to do, not you 😈 From what I can gather, you're just looking to get a full preventive physical. Honestly, I think that's great. It’s funny how we'll take our cars in for a routine oil change and a tune-up without thinking twice, yet people hesitate to do the exact same thing for their own bodies. Taking care of your health should be seen as both a right and a responsibility for everyone. There are plenty of private clinics and urgent care centers where you could just walk in and get this done—you’re probably looking at a total cost of around $667.
Rebecca Myers38, what’s your take on elective C-sections? I mean, when a woman specifically asks for one, not because there's some medical emergency or complication, but just because that's what she wants. Do you actually think that choice is justifiable? Or am I being too harsh by calling it "unnecessary surgery"?😬
A patient could walk into my office and say, "Hey, I want you to cut off my healthy ear." I’m not doing that, no matter how much they beg. So, what, am I violating their rights now? Give me a break!!! My clinical judgment regarding their condition and what treatment they actually need is paramount—it takes precedence over what they want because it's rooted in actual medical science. Seriously, go talk to a lawyer about this. Here’s an example: imagine a Jehovah's Witness needs emergency open-heart surgery where a blood transfusion is absolutely vital to save them. The patient refuses the procedure if it involves a transfusion, but the surgeon refuses to perform the surgery without one (any expert in the field will tell you I'm simplifying things here). Go ahead, let's see how you'd solve that dilemma. By your logic, Justin Fox, the surgeon should probably be electrocuted or at least stoned, right? 😈
I'm done arguing with you. Honestly, it feels like you might have some serious psychological issues going on; it seems like the idea of becoming a father has terrified you so much that you've lost your mind with all this "butcher" nonsense... If your girlfriend wants a kid (which is totally normal), hopefully she'll know to pick out a stable, sane father for him. God help you... though maybe a psychiatrist could try too. 🙂
Justin Fox, honestly, that last sentence you dropped was a straight-up insult to me. Where do you get off acting like you can just trash people without any consequences? Because that’s pretty much your whole vibe lately. Seriously though, would you mind telling us what you actually do for a living? Because I have a feeling if I—or anyone else here—decided to say something "nice" about your actual profession, we might all be in for a surprise... 😈
Justin Fox, man, you really need to take a closer look at the Patient Bill of Rights... specifically this part here:
II. PATIENT RIGHTS
The Right to Informed Consent
Article 6.
A patient's right to informed consent includes the right to be fully informed and the right to accept or refuse any specific diagnostic or therapeutic procedure.
Exceptions to the Right to Informed Consent
Article 7.
A patient's right to informed consent may be exceptionally limited only when justified by their health status in cases and in ways specifically defined by this Law.
Article 16.
A patient has the right to accept or refuse a specific diagnostic or therapeutic procedure, except in the case of an urgent medical intervention where failure to act would jeopardize the patient's life and health or cause permanent damage to their wellbeing.
So, yeah, major props to the patient and their autonomy, but at the end of the day, it's still the doctor who uses their expertise to judge what actually needs to happen. There isn't a single law out there that disputes that.
Besides, even the Hippocratic Oath says (Geneva modification 1948):
« Upon entering the medical profession, I solemnly pledge to devote my life to the service of humanity. I will hold my teachers in high esteem and respect them. I will practice my profession conscientiously and with dignity. I will make the health of my patient my first consideration. I will respect the secrets confided to me. I will maintain in all my dealings the honor and glory of the medical profession. I will consider my colleagues as brothers. In fulfilling my duty to my patients, I will not allow considerations of religion, nationality, race, politics, or social standing to intervene between my duty and my patient. I will respect, above all, human life. I will not permit considerations of race, color, creed, or caste, nor will I allow threats to influence my decisions, to lead me to use my medical knowledge contrary to the laws of humanity. This I solemnly pledge, freely and upon my honor. »
Is that enough for you? 😈 And hey, let's drop the "butcher" talk—you're insulting a lot of decent people with labels like that. As for the bad ones, well, they exist everywhere, but they aren't really our concern...
Justin Fox, I honestly think what you’re suggesting is a bit provocative.
Look, I’ve pulled out plenty of abdominal drains, T-drains from choledochus, and I’ve dressed some seriously nasty surgical wounds—including war injuries where bones were actually exposed... and speaking from my own experience, I can tell you one thing: you absolutely never skimp on pain management for patients undergoing procedures that are objectively excruciating, like major burns (which sometimes get dressed under general anesthesia or sedation). That part about sedation is huge—pain has a massive psychological component that people tend to overlook. Not everyone experiences pain in the exact same way... Also, you really need to talk to a patient before a procedure and just calm them down... they have to trust the operator, it's vital. When that happens, it hurts a lot less, believe me. For instance, resetting a fresh shoulder dislocation isn't actually that painful if you manage it right; even if the patient was screaming in agony beforehand, once you reassure them that the pain will vanish the second the humeral head pops back into place, and then you sedate them and relax the muscles with something like IV diazepam, it's much smoother. I personally had an ERCP done for obstructive jaundice without any premedication or analgesia at all... obviously, it hurt, especially when they performed a papilotomy (at the Mango papilla) using a cautery, but I managed. In fact, after the procedure (which, by the way, was unsuccessful, and they ended up having to do a laparotomy and common bile duct exploration an hour later), I actually got myself up off the table and walked back to my room on my own. The morning after my surgery, I was already up and walking around. But personally, I prefer it when the patient doesn't feel any pain at all—it just makes my job easier... I even perform simple procedures like electrocauterizing tiny papillomas on the neck under local anesthesia. And I know for a fact that most of my colleagues aren't sadists, regardless of what some people here are arguing...
Hang in there, you've got this 🙂 Just a heads-up, it’s probably going to take about a month before you feel like your body is back to its usual self—I mean, you basically had all those abdominal muscles sliced apart, so give yourself some grace. One thing I learned is that whenever you have to go to the bathroom or if you catch a coughing fit, you really need to press your hand against your incision site to help manage that internal pressure. It sounds a bit weird, but it’s super important to prevent the wound from opening up or developing an incisional hernia. You'll definitely find it a lot easier to bend over and move around in about a week...
Look, I’m definitely not an OB/GYN, but I actually know a decent amount about tissue structure and elasticity, so I just wanted to weigh in on a few things here: - Some people just have tissue that tears regardless of how much massage, creams, or intensive care they use. It really comes down to your levels of elastin and collagen—basically genetic factors you can't control. It’s just like stretch marks during pregnancy; you see some women who apply lotion twenty times a day and still get them, while others don't even bother and stay perfectly smooth. - There’s this misconception that a natural tear is somehow "better" or less damaging than a surgical episiotomy. That’s just not true. If a woman suffers a significant tear that reaches the anal sphincter, she could end up dealing with incontinence for the rest of her life. - Also, the idea that doctors perform episiotomies just because Medicare makes it profitable is a myth. In the US, the cost of delivery is bundled into one flat rate that covers everything from the pre-delivery meds to the postpartum care and any necessary repairs. They aren't getting a separate payday for choosing one over the other.
I could probably go on more, but I'll leave it at that... 😬