When I, as I inevitably must, tell new acquaintances that in my former life I was a psychiatrist, a look of fear crosses their faces and beads of sweat break out on their foreheads. They either imagine that, Svengali-like, I have instantaneously probed into the dark recesses of their minds or that, since shrinks are nuttier than their patients, they’d be well advised to avoid any intimate involvement with me.
I’m used to that, as well as the fact that most people seem not to know psychiatrists are fully trained and licensed physicians, not psychologists. Or as the Jewish mother of a physician told her friend who was bragging about her son’s PhD, “OK, so your son’s a doctor, but my son’s a doctor a doctor.”
After all those years of medical school, internships, residency and post residency training in all things medical, unlike a psychologist, I was licensed to prescribe drugs, remove your appendix or deliver your baby. Relax. I’m not about to perform your surgery, but I’m not reading your mind either. Well, maybe just a little.
Choosing medicine as a career is one thing I will never regret, not only because it is a fascinating, challenging and indisputably valuable profession, but because it armed me with knowledge that has paid off when I and my loved ones have faced medical problems.
Ever since my days in medical school, I have been astounded at how many of the intelligent, well educated people I meet have limited knowledge about how their bodies work, what causes illness, how to prevent and deal with common health problems, administer first aid and evaluate medical information provided by authorities and the media.
Joke: What’s the best kind of man for a woman to be marooned with on a desert island? Answer: an obstetrician.
My wife often expresses how she benefits from having a doctor in the house. She’s acquired a much better knowledge base over the years, but, like most people, she never learned much about health and medicine prior to our marriage.
I read that only 12% of Americans are “health literate.” This is defined as having adequate understanding of health and the health care system to be an active partner in their medical care.
Of course, all of us, including me, are ignorant about a great many things, but why are so many people so devoid of such vitally important knowledge?
Medicine is, of course, a complex and vast field. It’s also beyond the intellectual capacity of a great many people, but, to a large extent, people with enough intelligence to grasp its essentials prioritize other, less important, information. Rather than attempting to learn, they figure that if they get sick, their doctors will fix them just as a repairman performs service on the mysterious inner workings of appliances. As for preventive maintenance, most of us take better care of our cars than we do of our bodies.
While a lack of interest likely plays no small part in generalized medical ignorance, my guess is what is taught in high school health courses could be improved upon.
Today there’s a lot more to learn in every area than there was in my day. Much of it is important to know, but nothing is more important, and I suspect, more ignored, than the information people need in order to live healthier lives and to get the most from their medical care. It’s hard enough to adhere to good health habits even when you know what they are, but understanding the “why” of such habits can provide a bit more motivation.
Medically well informed citizens would be empowered to take better care of themselves, be less vulnerable to medical scams and misinformation and more capable of working with their doctors. If the general public had more medical knowledge, maybe people would more readily embrace lifestyles that prevent common chronic illnesses, the highly preventable but ubiquitous conditions that render many people unnecessarily disabled in their older years. These ailments take up a great chunk of the time and money being poured into our woefully inefficient heath care system.
Many who now suffer from ill health and chronic illness might well now be living fuller and happier lives had they learned a little more about medicine early in life.
An Author's Inner Mind 