How do we believe the doctor when there are so many stories about doctors being wrong

[Limeslime]

Thank you so much for creating this thread! I truely needed to see these responses today as I have been worrying about a changing mole that I went to my GP about in February...and she froze it off for me! I’ve been panicking that it wasn’t, and now cannot be, biopsied. But reading this thread has reassured me that I shouldn’t doubt my GPs ability to make safe and correct decisions!

[eminence]

Servererror is spot on. Plane crashes make the news, safe landings don't.

[Fishmanpa]

As one who has had to put my trust and life in the hands of many doctors, I personally don't struggle with this issue. Why? Because when push comes to shove the chances of a life altering misdiagnosis are slim to none. As has been said in this thread, we hear about the few cases where they got it wrong (and those are usually extraordinary scenarios). We don't hear about the 100's of thousands of cases where they save lives.

My wife and I recently had to change doctors due to insurance changes. I researched and found a practice we started going to. I'm very comfortable and pleased by the amount of attention and thoroughness these doctors show, especially in light of the real physical challenges both my wife and I present.

Positive thoughts

[Carys]

I have been worrying about a changing mole that I went to my GP about in February...and she froze it off for me! I’ve been panicking that it wasn’t, and now cannot be, biopsied.

Limesline....you said on your thread about this mole (thread called 'Does anyone in the UK know'), that you picked it off yourself, as thought it was a large blackhead ?

[Limeslime]

Limesline....you said on your thread about this mole, that you picked it off yourself, as thought it was a large blackhead ?

Different mole hun!

[paranoid-viking]

Hi guys... I am wondering how we are supposed to believe doctors and such when there are so many overwhelming stories about doctors being wrong ( even on this site... a site I have wanted to believe was a safe place for me.. This is a key factor that pushes my health anxiety over the edge.. how do I just believe?

Any help ?

xx

Lilly

Good question. And certain "cancer awareness" just love to push stories about misdiagnosis just to give the clear message never feel safe!.

[BikerMatt]

As one who has had to put my trust and life in the hands of many doctors, I personally don't struggle with this issue. Why? Because when push comes to shove the chances of a life altering misdiagnosis are slim to none. As has been said in this thread, we hear about the few cases where they got it wrong (and those are usually extraordinary scenarios). We don't hear about the 100's of thousands of cases where they save lives.

My wife and I recently had to change doctors due to insurance changes. I researched and found a practice we started going to. I'm very comfortable and pleased by the amount of attention and thoroughness these doctors show, especially in light of the real physical challenges both my wife and I present.

Positive thoughts

FMP just out of interest, how long is a GP appt in the states? We get 10mins but i don't think i've ever had an appt last more than 5mins.

[Capercrohnj]

FMP just out of interest, how long is a GP appt in the states? We get 10mins but i don't think i've ever had an appt last more than 5mins.

Here in Canada usually a few minutes long except with my GI specialist when we have lots to discuss (I have 2 GI diseases and I'm a complex patient)

[Daedalus]

Two processes at work here:

As per Servererror, media stories are "self-selecting" - i.e., "terrible error by doctor leads to death of innocent child" selects itself for attention because of the shock horror aspect, whereas "1000 children correctly diagnosed with chicken pox" isn't going to make the news.

Also there's what's called "confirmation bias" - we tend to notice things that fit with our current concerns, beliefs, interests, etc. So if we read a story about the ALS patient who was misdiagnosed with benign twitching, that will loom large and dominate our thoughts (rather than the 1000s of stories we've seen where diagnosis was easy and correct).

There's also self-selection and confirmation bias involved with Dr Google. Benign conditions are not normally clinically interesting, so you're not going to find much on them. Plus if we're terrified we're about to die of our knee pain, we'll ignore page after page that says knees normally get sore for entirely benign and uninteresting reasons, and focus entirely upon the one example of somebody who died because of a knee-consuming parasite!

[Fishmanpa]

FMP just out of interest, how long is a GP appt in the states? We get 10mins but i don't think i've ever had an appt last more than 5mins.

My experience with GPs has been 45min or so for a yearly physical around 15-20 for a visit pertaining to an issue or illness. My visits with my cardiologist or oncology team was typically 20-30 minutes.

Positive thoughts