My dad’s a physician. When I was growing up, he worked at a teaching hospital, and most of my necessary exams were free trade offs (Physician’s consideration). The downside was that since I was outside the paying practice, the doctors involved generally hauled in their students to practice their exam techniques. On one memorable afternoon I recieved a round dozen complete eye exams in succession. I disliked it, but took it as a necessary part of my lot in life as a faculty child. I would be severely annoyed to recieve the same treatment as a standard patient.

It’s not part of my disease, but this last year there’s been pain from secondary causes, like my tracheotomy and feeding tube and sitting in a hospital wheelchair instead of my own. When I was intubated, before the trach, they kept me pretty zoned out with fentynol because that’s very uncomfortable. All of that improved enormously when I got home and could keep people from inadvertantly tugging on the tubes. Now I can go weeks without any significant pain at either site.

Next time, say “Sure. It’ll cost you $200.” If he or she starts complaining, ask how much they get paid for instructing the students, and if anything else the students use in their education is provided for free.

Anyway, I too am often used as a “teaching aide” and while I don’t mind in theory being part of the learning process, I DO mind when it is taken for granted that I will assist. One day, and a reknowned facility in the Urgent Care for a strep test, the resident takes my history, which is to say the least long and “interesting.” Remember, I’m sick at the time and am just there for a rapid strep test, which should take all of 15 minutes. The resident gets his attending to sign off (strep test came back negative, and I’d like to get on my merry way to be able to rest and get well). Naturally, the attending physician comes in and asks if his med students can come in and look at my feet and do a quick exam for the sake of learning. Fine I say… but then it takes something ridiculous like another 45 minutes before I see them again and allow them to examine me, etc. Needless to say, I walked out of there feeling like I deserved compensation for my time and patience rather than having to shell out $$ for a copay, but that’s just the nature of the game.

My favorite “worst dr. story” is when I was 17 and in the hospital recovering from a nearly fatal reaction to anesthesia when having my wisdom teeth removed. At this point, I had been in the hospital for over 3 weeks already, but I had finally been moved from the ICU to a regular floor in order to rehab from the whole ordeal. To say I was sick of being poked and prodded is an understatement. I had just been examined by a resident when yet another resident walks in the room and starts “examining” me. No hello, no, I’m going to do X. He just starts doing stuff, and odd stuff at that. At the time, they were all paying attention to my heart and lungs (as that was what was recovering), and here he was poking around my abdomen. I said a few times, admittedly not politely, “The other resident was just here, can’t you just read the chart?” And then, “Why are you feeling my abdomen, no one else does that?” He curtly responded with something like, “Let me do my job.” and finally, as I was complaining, AGAIN, an intern who had walked into the room looked over at the chart he was reading and said, “That patient is in the next room.” He said, “Oh” and quickly left the room. No apology or anything. It was as if I was just an object for his amusement. I was so disgusted.

Anyway, just wanted to share a few of my own stories. I feel your pain!!!

I work in a teaching hospital and I personally cannot stand MDs who have GCD (God Complex Disorder). Luckily, the only one in my department has a mild case and reserves his disorder for staff. His patients love him (and he’s a terrific plastics guy, rebuilds cancer victims), so most of us just let him believe he’s God (and avoid him as much as possible).

It really makes you wonder when the neuro stopped caring that he was working with a person, and not a disease…