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The modern process to become a doctor 1) selects for incredibly obedient, follow-the-rules type individuals and 2) implicitly and explicitly enforces those norm
by jobs_throwaway 3y ago
The modern process to become a doctor 1) selects for incredibly obedient, follow-the-rules type individuals and 2) implicitly and explicitly enforces those norms.
If becoming a professional programmer required 4 years of grade grubbing in undergrad, 4 hellacious years of graduate school, then 4+ more years as a resident, and once you started working your customers could sue you every time they encountered a bug you wrote, I bet you we would see similar risk aversion/coherence to accepted wisdom in the profession that we do in medicine.
- mattgreenrocks 3y agoYep. And doctors often seem to have zero interest in something that doesn't fit their models well.
- onlyrealcuzzo 3y agoWhy, Margaret, assume you're a spherical cow and take these brown pills twice daily. You'll be just as new in a jiffy.
- agumonkey 3y agoOh I'm not asking risks off of them, I somehow respect their effort and responsabilities, just a more neutral point of view. They're judgement can lead to long term damage too if they refuse to take your story into account. A simple "you don't fit the standard grid, maybe there's something else, personally I can't help you, keep digging."
- s1artibartfast 3y agoI think there is more to it than that. The process also selects for people who are very hard working and trains them to think in terms of averages. Everyone wants an unconventional doctor when the convention isnt working for them, but that doesn't mean people on average would be better off if doctors didn't follow convention. The desire for a doctor that bucks the rules breaks down once you understand that they aren't super-human problem solvers (as seen on TV). Even listening to and believing patients becomes an optimization problem.
- graemep 3y agoYou get the same effect in countries that are less litigious, even in countries where it is really rare for doctors to be sued so I think you can remove the legal risk. I think it is a combination of social conditions (a job which is high up a hierarchy of respect - well above what in Britain professional people have taken to calling "the gammon" in recent years), plus dealing with the general public, plus knowing one has a high level of training and skill, plus the tendency of any closed profession to strong on consensus.