Do you need to have a license to practice medicine?

[Genesis]

I sometimes wonder that society has become so focused on licensing that it kills the opportunity/initiative of people who are naturals at healing. I.e. they don't have the opportunity to get to a University, or complete their University education, or get a license. I'm not talking about quacks and miracle healers here. More like the genuine article, people who are gifted at diagnosing diseases, who have an affinity for reading people, and who are excellent at treating them?

So what do you think, do you think that licensing of the medical profession is a good or bad thing?

 

[whsecurity]

I think it is good to have a license for your job. You have a good base knowledge and generally a good background.
Specifically for medicine I think we are a bit mixed up. We have the doctors and we have the practitioners.
Doctors base there knowledge - profession to books, medicines and eventually the experience they gain.
Practitioners base there knowledge - profession to herbs, nature and the experience they gain from the past generations.

I think practitioners are more low level than doctors but doctors are more specialized and depended.

Damn those thoughts burn my Brain.

 

[Genesis]

I don't know about it. It all looks good. But then I make an appointment with a doctor. There is the production line waiting in his office. I finally get to him and he is completely bogged down with administrative work. I.e. he has his computer screen in front of me and his mind is distracted with completing everything in it. So immediately there is something missing there in his focus on the patient. I don't know how safe and secure it is if he may have missed out on tests he should have done, and maybe in a few years find out that if he had done X, Y Z test, something that turned out bad could have been prevented. Now take away all those bells and whistles, and a doctor who is allowed to completely focus on the patient, and then maybe there will be less emphasis on paper work and prescriptions, and more preventive strategies with patients. Nothing like a doctor being "in touch" with the patient to rev up the patient's immune system. And nothing like a doctor who is completely "disinterested" as his mind is on what keeps his license in place, to stress the patient's immune system.

 

[whsecurity]

If I say I am doctor and I can heal you. Do you believe me?
If I say I am doctor and I can heal you and I have big reputation from my parents (also doctors). Do you believe me?
If ...
If ...

And after those ifs you came to me and (knock wood) you die and no one take responsibility for that... and next patient will come from me to practice and experiment... and no one stops me...

I think you just went to a doctor with bad time management and you should probably visit another one!

 

[Genesis]

Well I don't blame any specific doctor really. As all of the doctors here are slaves to the system that keeps their medical licenses alive. I actually like the doctor I visited in January, and we were quite relaxed with one another to the extent he was telling me about his difficulty to practice as he would have liked to because of all of the red tape and bureaucracy. So my opinion is more of a global one. I genuinely like doctors who try and get as much as distance they can from Government control, licenses and such. The more independent the doctor, the better the chance of finding a doctor who is more focused on the patient.

 

[PeaceSigns]

O f course not, but a lot of people believe in spiritual healers. While I think it's a crock, I think hospital and big pharama are not the only options and that there are real and helpful alternatives to Western medicine.

 

[Genesis]

Agreed. But I wonder how many medical practitioners with medical licenses are really good at what they do?

 

[PeaceSigns]

That's true of all jobs, but I guess it's risky when you have a person faced with life or death decisions who isn't great at making those choices.

 

[Genesis]

Do you think a license would be a guarantee however that the person is great at those decisions?

 

[PeaceSigns]

Definitely not - a license just means they went through basic tests. It's similar to a university degree, it holds no value asides from the fact that a person had the money to go for more schooling (but in today's society it's basically advanced day care). An extra piece of paper doesn't necessarily mean you're safe or more secure.

 

[Genesis]

Exactly how I see it too. Guess the only way to sound out how good a doctor is, is via feedback from others. That's the way I've always found really good doctors and dentists. Although in the UAE I haven't found a good doctor yet.

 

[PeaceSigns]

A good doctor is someone that listens to you and takes your concerns seriously. I've yet to find a good doctor - I've found ok ones, but I haven't really looked - guess I don't really have a big need to search for one right now in my life (fortunately).

 

[Briar Spirit]

There was a time here in the UK where the local GP (General Practitioner) was considered almost Godlike in their local communities, everyone had total faith in them and they had a staggering amount of good will from their communities. These days virtually no one trusts GP's and for good damn reason too, there are countless cases of misdiagnosis on both sides of the coin, too many GP's abusing their authority with Patients just because they don't like the patient or because they're having a bad day. The trust in the Medical professions is dying fast here in the UK, in all seriousness it doesn't matter a damn if they have a license or not, we have hordes of totally crap GP's here in the UK and they all have licenses, doesn't mean squat any more.

If those self same Doctors were forced to refresh their knowledge more regularly then maybe their licenses would be worth more in the eyes of the public, there are moves being made to instigate precisely that here in the UK but it is too little too damn late in my opinion, a lot of people have left this mortal coil because of inept 'licensed' practitioners, who is going to mourn them now they are gone, no amount of bureaucracy is going to put that right.

 

[Genesis]

I feel the same Briar. When I visit a doctor it has to be at a hospital, and the doctor's attention is probably 50% on completing all of the bureaucracy info on a computer screen and 30% on standard questions, and maybe if I'm lucky 20% on me. Think we've become a production line of sorts, regrettably due to the same medical care being split up many fold to cover many more people. Think even doctors, particularly the ethical ones are fed-up with this as they seem to be working more for bureaucratic admin systems than practicing real medicine.

 

[Briar Spirit]

The last time I saw a GP who I felt actually gave a damn about her patients was back in 1987, although in England she was in fact of German origin and she really did care. When you entered her room she physically turned around to face you with her back to the computer, she had a fairly strong knowledge of your medical history in her memory and she really 'listened' to what you had to say, this wasn't a small Practise either, her Practise covered a large Town and all the surrounding villages, quite impressive really. I do indeed feel just like a slab of meat in a supermarket these days with GP's, I for one have lost complete faith in them and cannot see that faith ever being restored.

 

[helpremember]

Guess the only way to sound out how good a doctor is, is via feedback from others.

I agree with this approach and unfortunately am now faced with just such a task. Just got news last week that my GP is retiring and shutting down his practice. He's a great guy, never made me feel rushed, had a good sense of humor and never made me feel like he was over-prescribing or over-diagnosing. It was real "old style" medical service and he will be sorely missed.

Would almost rather have to find a new mechanic for my car than a new doctor...well, almost.