Dr. Bullshit... paging Dr Bullshit.

Why can't lifestuff just be left alone when I've finally gotten it arranged to my satisfaction?

Anyone?

Crickets.
I hear goddamn crickets.
This isn't helpful, you guys.

I saw the same doctor for 16 years. Followed her from one private practice to a shared with a family member practice and back to another private practice. And then, when her private practice became impossible for her to make a living from, to Conglomerated Clusterfuck Inc, a 'non-profit' huge and crazy hospital system.

This wasn't my first choice, as a matter of fact. I was kinda pissed. But she knew me. My general and medical anxiety. All the surgeries. She knew my kids, Lyssa was only six when I started seeing her. Lyssa saw her, too. So I followed her. She continued to be my doctor.

But corporate medicine wasn't for her. She wasn't allowed to spend enough time with her patients, often being nagged at for 'not seeing enough' people. She skipped her lunches and breaks, was often at the office until very late to make sure all her paperwork was caught up, and mostly just hated being there.

The corporation wouldn't allow her to prescribe certain medication combinations. I'm not going to tell you about mine, but I'd successfully taken two particular medications together for about six years, and the corporation said no.

Not because they cared about me, though. They were only concerned with the possibility of lawsuits in the event of an adverse reaction or drug interaction.

She was tasked with selling tests and vaccines, too.
We went over the list of things they wanted her to sell, but she told me that most of those tests were completely unnecessary and that I probably didn't need most of them.
Blood tests for this and that.
Flu shots. 

If you know me, you know I have a very large aversion to being messed with.

I will not willingly step on a scale at the doc office, for example.

My train of thought works like this:
If you look at me you'll know I'm overweight. And since I already know it, what is the point of the number?

So if I don't step on the scale, you'll still know I need to lose weight.
And I'll be damned, I already knew that!

Hang on while I search for the post I wrote about this issue. Ah. Here's the relevant part.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
No scales.
Drives 'em crazy at the doctor's office.

Last time it came up, the winsome waif with her cute little lavender stethoscope and color coordinated scrubs worked really hard to get me on that scale.

I was pretty proud of all the ways I said no without swearing and without kicking her in one of her little toothpick ankles. I have to give her credit, she really did try.

Several times.

Hinted that she *needed* to know, then said it was really important for me.

Suggested in a confidential tone that I'd really be helping her, personally.

When I told her, "Unless you can provide a more compelling reason for me to get on that scale than those I have for staying off, the answer is no," she was only temporarily taken aback. She pasted that brave smile right back on after a so-brief-it-almost-wasn't-an-absence, absence.

She even said brightly, "Well what if you stand on it this way?"
She demonstrated. Climbed on the scale and faced away from the numbers.
"Then, I could just write it down and not tell you!"

Her attitude was cheery and more than a little condescending, although I don't think the condescension was intentional.

I gave her one of my stock answers. "Unless you're planning general anesthesia right now, no. And if you are, we definitely need to talk about more than my weight."
I won.
Didn't get on the scale.

At the end of the appointment, my doctor handed me two pieces of paper, stapled together to tell me of her instructions.

Of course the ones we'd just discussed. Standard procedure at the large, may-as-well-be-doc-in-a-box medical group practice she's now a part of.

At the top of the page were all my vital statistics, height, blood pressure, temperature. And the comment 'weight needed to calculate BMI'.

So now I have another thing to add to my list of "no, I will *not* get on the scale!" reasons. If I'd done what Winsome suggested, get on the scale and don't look, that number would have been handed to me in black and white at the end of my visit, completely defeating the purpose.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So my doctor finally had enough.
The unnecessary tests she was required to try to sell.
The lack of time to spend with people who needed it.
Late nights and early mornings and meetings and bullshit.

She got fed up and found a new job. One where she can spend as much time as she needs to with her patients. One where medicare reimbursement doesn't matter because the rules are different.

She's now working at a Native American clinic. I'm not able to follow her, of course.

I talked with her before she left so that we could figure out which doctor in the conglomerate would be the best fit. My insurance requires me to use this medical practice. We talked about the other doctors in the practice. And I know more about them than I probably should, so that's how we picked out the one I'd be seeing.

She's nice enough, I suppose. But she is selling tests. And not appreciating my lack of regard for unnecessary bullshit.

Example... "Let's get your blood test scheduled."

"Um, blood test for....?"

"Oh. Hepatitis."

"Why?"

"Oh we give everyone between 55 and 65 the test. Just to make sure."

"Oh. Well, I won't need that."

I got an exasperated look.

I explained further. "I have been monogamous for 40 years. I have never used IV drugs. Or had a blood transfusion. Or engaged in any other risky behaviors."

"Well, your insurance covers it!"

"I don't care if my insurance covers. I don't need it. Why spend the time/money for something I don't need?"

"Well do you just want me to drop that test, then?"

"Yes."

She wants me to do this test and that test. She isn't a very good listener. She's great at talking, though.

I'm frustrated.

There isn't anything I can do about it. Changing doctors within a corporate conglomeration isn't going to help me. They all work for a company, not for their patients. The bottom line is their only concern.

Ever think that the medical system in this country is all sorts of fucked up?
Yeah, me too.

::sigh::