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12/30/2013
RESPONSES/COMMENTS (PM News quick poll) - PART 1A
From: Brian Kiel, DPM
In response to Dr. Kornfeld's letter regarding podiatrists' dissatisfaction with their profession and its sweeping assumptions, I say let's dig a little deeper before we make such condemnations. A recent Time Magazine poll of U.S. physicians found that of 13,000 doctors, 2/3 were dissatisfied with their profession. In a poll by Forbes magazine, of 24,000 doctors, 54% would choose another profession and in Surgical Products magazine, 40% were unhappy. I don't think that we are any different than the others in the medical field. The non-medical pressures that we face on a daily basis can be overwhelming to many and cause this dissatisfaction.
In his letter, Dr. Kornfeld mentions "making a living" several times, as if that is the driving force for being a doctor. Of course that is important, but most of us went into medicine to provide a service to the public, and if your only motivation is to "make a living," then it is more likely for unhappiness to develop. Enjoying what we do, curing illness, and why we do it, to serve the public are the best reasons to do what we do and the recipe for happiness. By the way, I am one of the 30% who would not change occupations.
Other messages in this thread:
08/02/2016
RESPONSES/COMMENTS (PM NEWS QUICK POLL) - PART 1A
From Richard A. Simmons, DPM
Dr. Smith asks Dr. Siegel, “what makes him so special” because Dr. Siegel’s health is doing well because of ACA. My answer is a simple word: civilization. We live in a civilized society. I do not complain that I have to pay taxes for the parks in my city that I do not use; I do not complain about paying taxes for schools for children I did not have; I do not complain that I supplement a transit system that allows your patients access to your office; I do not complain that I pay taxes to build the roads that your patients use to travel to your office. These are the prices we pay for civilization. There are many who have that independent attitude that “I have mine; screw you!”
For you, I say, there is plenty of land available where many can go to live self-sufficient: you can sink your own wells, handle your own sewage, farm your own land. Have at it. That civilization can provide medical treatment and care for Dr. Siegal is a win/win situation for all of us: 1) he is working member of society who I am sure pays taxes, etc., and 2) we have a very intelligent man who is able to contribute to the well-being of citizens in his community by being a podiatrist. You see, those children that I pay taxes for their education, one day, they will take care of me. This is what we call civilization.
Richard A. Simmons, DPM, Rockledge, FL
06/24/2016
RESPONSES/COMMENTS (PM NEWS QUICK POLL) - PART 1A
From: Randall Brower, DPM
I would not be in favor of prescribing marijuana if it was legal, assuming it is traditionally smoked. I argue that I would be liable for any patient who develops lung cancer or other cancers from smoking it. Until they can FDA-approve, study it, and put it in reproducible delivery systems that deliver regulated quantities for proper treatment selection, I refuse to jump on that boat.
That said, I have seen anecdotally in my practice many patients who get real relief of pain from marijuana, and they actually have quite a significant decreased use of narcotics post-surgically.
Randall Brower, DPM, Avondale, AZ
11/11/2015
RESPONSES/COMMENTS (PM NEWS QUICK POLL) - PART 1A
From: William Deutsch, DPM
American physicians should regard the happenings in Great Britain as junior doctors ballot for a strike to oppose unsafe working conditions in hospitals. Long hours, reduced overtime, a paltry pay raise has the junior doctor's (residents) Union ready to vote. They have the full support of the BMA. They're not talking about a one-day strike which would go unnoticed. The advantage they have is their strike is against the government which salaries NHS doctors.
Who is the one-day strike in America directed against? The only effective response American physicians can offer is non-participation in all insurance plans, and not just for a day. An insurance company that has no participating physicians is out of business. PPACA reform began and ended with insurers. The fallout from PPACA on the landscape of healthcare wasn't accidental.
EMR and MU are the government's 'common core' response to physician-administered healthcare. They are administrative burdens which only help bean counters, while leaving doctors to drown in a sea of confusion. Like the good lemmings we are, we march dutifully to our own demise.
William Deutsch, DPM, Valley Stream, NY
01/02/2014
RESPONSES/COMMENTS (PM NEWS QUICK POLL) - PART 1A
From: Ira Baum, DPM
Dr. Kiel makes a point regarding the dissatisfaction of a broad cross-section of medicine, but that's not the point. The concern is our profession. It is also incorrect to pigeon hole the dissatisfaction to earning capacity. Podiatry has had internal and external issues that have not, in my opinion, been addressed with any practical solutions for both the short and long-term vision of our profession.
I have no interest in expressing how I might solve some of the fundamental issues; there have been more than a few reasonable solutions expressed in PM News. There are many variables that impact personal satisfaction when it comes to a career that serves the public and for those of us who have families and financial responsibilities, that if not met would surely negatively affect an individual's love of their chosen career. I am in the sunset of my career, and have made a great life for myself and family, yet that doesn't mean that the profession shouldn't address these issues so that our young colleagues and students can look forward to satisfying careers.
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