By Steve Sherman –
Trust is the bedrock of the medical profession. If we can’t trust the men and women in the white coats, then they have no power to help us. Our trust gives them the power.
The patient must trust that a doctor is knowledgeable. That is why they put framed degrees on their walls.
The doctor must be sympathetic and compassionate to some degree to whatever situation a patient finds themselves in.
And lastly, the patient must trust that the doctor is not simply using them as a tool to riches.
In recent years, that trust has been shaken somewhat by the onslaught of Obamacare all around us. The veil has been lifted a little bit on medical doctors and the fact that they are simply part of a corrupt system of health care delivery. They operate many times out fear of reprisal from an insurance company or government oversight committee. They definitely don’t always act in the best interest of their patients. This is many times not how they want to behave; they simply have no choice or they risk losing everything. Not exactly the best situation for a trusting relationship.
Don’t get me wrong – I love doctors, but the incentives from government and the insurance companies have been destructive to the profession. And with optometrists there are other influences pushing the eye doctors in the wrong direction.
Eye doctors have enjoyed less scrutiny than most. Patients still tend to trust them implicitly. If a patient is told they must come in yearly…they most likely do. Even if there is no medical reason to do such a thing. Eye doctors profit mostly not by providing examinations, but by selling the same products they prescribe. The most lucrative products are contact lens’ because they are in a state of constant need.