You are most probably right. I was being too European/French centric. I think here, suing a medical professional is less common. At least generalists, because

You are most probably right. I was being too European/French centric. I think here, suing a medical professional is less common. At least generalists, because they don't perform surgeries so their misjudgments/mistakes are probably less impactful and thus less obvious. It's a bit sad and scary that this is a reality in the healthcare field, but I think you got a point. The positive side of the story is that if you have a reason to trust the doctor you have in front of you (because he's a friend for example, as you said), you should get a good advice. On the other hand, if the subject is controversial, like antidepressants seem to be, I suppose you would need several advices from several trusted sources, and in the end you might not even have a clear path forward.