Thursday, October 1, 2009

It is included in the Medical Code of Ethics that doctors are not to charge professional fees to parents, spouses and children of fellow doctors. This clause is followed by almost all the doctors that I know - except for my neurologist and hubby's cardiologist. I can understand my neurologist's situation because I was a new patient then and even if he saw D1 hovering in her medical coat with her name and department boldly embroidered in the pocket, his neurons did not work to do 1 + 1 = 2.

The cardiologist is another story. He has been my late father-in-law's cardiologist and he more or less saw D1 from the time she was in med school to the present. The cardiologist is also the doctor of MIL and of D3 when she had seizures three years ago. Since D1 is working at the same hospital as he does, they are, in essence, colleagues. So when hubby was presented with the cardiologist's bill, D1 was really surprised. First, the cardiologist was not even physically present to examine hubby. He just called his residents to run some tests. Second,the cardiologist did not follow the code of ethics. Third, the professional fee was "outrageous"! The surgeon who was hubby's prime doctor charged: "no bill".

Last night, I called my friend Eva, the one who kept asking me about which best weight loss pills she should take, to check up on her. Her house was submerged in flood water too with the water level inside her house chest deep. She said her toe is throbbing and that her hubby slipped and now has a swollen ankle. The throbbing toe concerned me for it was recently operated on and took a really long time to heal because my friend is diabetic. Her hubby is a cardio patient and a diabetic too.

D1 was eating dinner and I told her to hurry up and drop by friend's house for a quick consult. D1 was slow to respond and she said that she can't do anything if the ankle was fractured. I told her that "well, dropping by and looking at their ailments would help". My friends toe is red and swollen. Her hubby's ankle was swollen too. They have four grown-up kids with families who live within a stone-throw away radius from my friend's house. Where were they? This was D1's point. She said that my friend's children should have brought their parents to the hospital for treatment. I answered "Well, they didn't. That's why they are my friends and you are my daughter who is a doctor."

Save Lives. Is that a doctor's main point in being one or has it changed?

Look after your ailing parents. Isn't this the norm anymore?


Posted by desperateblogger On 10/01/2009 07:12:00 AM No comments

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