My Son, The Doctor

Mother's joke this line, but it's true that they think, they'd love to have a son, or daughter, who is a doctor. I speak of medical doctors, not the ones who have offices in universities or other high places. To wish your offspring to be medical doctors, is rarely said by those whose mates are doctors. Mothers, wives and children of doctors know how difficult that life is. To be expected to have success with each and every patient sitting in the waiting room must be daunting. What the doctor really wants to say and what he has to say are two different things. Most of us know exactly what's wrong and what we ought to do before we land in the little room with the plastic bed that is always too high, the padded chair and doctors stool, the computer on the counter and a lot of scary stuff in little sealed bags that you don't want to know about. You wait your turn and when the door opens you are relieved because now you are going to be fixed. You tell your tale, get the exam and wise words and leave with a prescription when your fifteen minutes are up. Usually, you get better and that's it. But sometimes, it isn't that easy and you and your doctor will be spending lots more time discussing tests and treatments and hopefully, working together to help you. What is not fair is misplaced criticism when a patient's physical situation doesn't respond and improve. The doctor can do only what is available and known. The rest is up to your body and each one is entirely different. How each body responds to medications is unique and perhaps adjustments are needed. It means many visits to the doctor. On the other side of this, is the doctor who has to see large numbers of people daily as well as do hospital rounds, take phone calls, run an office with employees and keep up with new developments in the field. The day of golf must be heaven! We lay folk, don't think of this when we see our doctor living in the big house on the hill, driving the costly car while taking the kids to the best schools and sitting in front of us giving advice. It took the doctor many years to reach these pinnacles and a huge background of caring and working with all kinds of people both in the profession and patients in the office. Let's give the doctors a break and take better care of ourselves. Let's see the doctor with a little list so that our fifteen minutes is worthwhile. Let's be grateful and not critical of  people who truly make life time sacrifices in choosing this work. It can't be an easy choice.