Dr. Gregory House is considered unconventional.
Besides the fact that he is addicted to painkillers and sometimes gets his patients drunk, the moody doctor does whatever it takes to get to the bottom of a patient’s problem; the dramatic TV show House revolves around his need to solve mysterious ailments. The show is a hit, but I reckon it’s not just because viewers enjoy watching the disabled doctor harass his subordinates—it’s a deeper illustration of the state of Western healthcare.
Those watching House get to indulge themselves in a medical fantasy where doctors will do anything to find the cause of their illness—not just treat their symptoms.
Western medicine has long been accused of bandaging surface problems and not healing the whole self. Whether it is an issue of money or a lack of patience, the quick fi x is the way to go for doctors on our continent. It doesn’t matter if you fully believe in the folkpracticing ways of Eastern and Chinese traditional medicine—you have to admit that focusing on the broader picture in terms of your whole body and your health instead of a specific warning sign seems only logical.
And if you are unlucky enough to be in the 18 percent of Canadians that do not have a general practitioner, then you know full well the sad state of walk-in clinics. Although clinics admittedly exist to relieve emergency room wait times, and not to continually treat full-time patients, much of the population relies on this fast-food version of healthcare because of a lack of family doctors. But seeing a different doctor every visit not only adds inconsistencies to your treatment, it can also invite medical mistakes since patient records may be scattered throughout various clinics.
But, recently, a study was published in Archives of Internal Medicine that noted the unproductive, and sometimes uncomfortable, nature of physician check up chitchat—so even those with regular GPs do not escape doctor related difficulties.
So, how come a drug-addicted, rude man has become the epitome of dashing medical professional?
Because, although his efforts may seem irregular, a doctor who puts more thought into how he is going to cure his patients rather than what he is going to say to them is what we need more of— patients want to know honest answers from their doctors, not what the doctors had for lunch. Perhaps, if every doctor were as much of a detective as Dr. House is, we’d all be in better shape.
Besides the fact that he is addicted to painkillers and sometimes gets his patients drunk, the moody doctor does whatever it takes to get to the bottom of a patient’s problem; the dramatic TV show House revolves around his need to solve mysterious ailments. The show is a hit, but I reckon it’s not just because viewers enjoy watching the disabled doctor harass his subordinates—it’s a deeper illustration of the state of Western healthcare.
Those watching House get to indulge themselves in a medical fantasy where doctors will do anything to find the cause of their illness—not just treat their symptoms.
Western medicine has long been accused of bandaging surface problems and not healing the whole self. Whether it is an issue of money or a lack of patience, the quick fi x is the way to go for doctors on our continent. It doesn’t matter if you fully believe in the folkpracticing ways of Eastern and Chinese traditional medicine—you have to admit that focusing on the broader picture in terms of your whole body and your health instead of a specific warning sign seems only logical.
And if you are unlucky enough to be in the 18 percent of Canadians that do not have a general practitioner, then you know full well the sad state of walk-in clinics. Although clinics admittedly exist to relieve emergency room wait times, and not to continually treat full-time patients, much of the population relies on this fast-food version of healthcare because of a lack of family doctors. But seeing a different doctor every visit not only adds inconsistencies to your treatment, it can also invite medical mistakes since patient records may be scattered throughout various clinics.
But, recently, a study was published in Archives of Internal Medicine that noted the unproductive, and sometimes uncomfortable, nature of physician check up chitchat—so even those with regular GPs do not escape doctor related difficulties.
So, how come a drug-addicted, rude man has become the epitome of dashing medical professional?
Because, although his efforts may seem irregular, a doctor who puts more thought into how he is going to cure his patients rather than what he is going to say to them is what we need more of— patients want to know honest answers from their doctors, not what the doctors had for lunch. Perhaps, if every doctor were as much of a detective as Dr. House is, we’d all be in better shape.
3 comments:
Hey!
You watch House?!! Cool!! We have House on TVs here too. But I am not really a huge fan of it.. I do watch it once awhile.
You have a band?! Wow.. that's cool. I didn't know that.
No, I was just randomly surfing around. I found your blog's url from Justin's history blog.
I usually drop by your blog once awhile! Nice meeting ya!
Hey! Thanks for your comment on my blog that I'm trying to baby along. Anyways, I don't watch house :(. But you should revolutionize the health care mindset :)
For the betterment of humanity, of course.
I'm sorry if this comment makes sense because even I don't know what the hell I'm talking about.
:P
Nice to see you!
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