A Question From Anonymous

Anonymous asks: "Wouldn't the patient be better of [sic]if his or her gp hands them off to a specialist better qualified to handle his or her specific disease?"

Response: Let's suppose that you had seen your OB/GYN physician once or twice a year for twelve or thirteen years, the OB/GYN had operated on you and diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer, and before sending you to an oncologist, had carefully avoided telling you the diagnosis, what it meant and his plan to never see you again. Would you trust that OB/GYN? Would you feel abandoned? Would you trust the oncologist or would you begin to wonder if the oncologist would abandon you, too?

There's a difference between a referral to a skilled specialist and abandonment of a patient. There's a difference between finding the most competent physician to deal with a life-threatening disease and dumping the patient on the new doctor without even having the courtesy to give the patient the diagnosis, the meaning of the diagnosis and explain the limits of your future relationship.

As one who practiced specialty medicine, I heard the complaints and anger of patients (and their families) whose doctors unceremoniously and without warning dumped them. The sunshine enema didn't mitigate their hurt, their doubts, their anger and their grief. Trust, and a working relationship between a physician and a patient is built on mutual respect and a willingness to discuss the truth.