Friday, December 20, 2013

when i saw that the "duck dynasty" guy had been fired from his show, i cringed. i knew it would set off an unnecessary firestorm about gays and give anti-homos more fuel to rally behind. A&E can do whatever the hell they want with their stars, but i don't think it is doing the "gay agenda" any favors to have him suspended. far better would it have been for them to make a statement saying they don't support his views and then maybe have an episode next season or something where this family meets some 'normal' homos and have a dialogue about that. now it's just gonna be a cluster on the media cycle for the next few days and neither side will have changed their views on anything.

i often wonder what patients would think if they knew about my private life. we as doctors get to know so much about a patient's personal life, yet it's a real one-way street. would it really matter to you what you knew about your doctor's personal life? it shouldn't, but i've always been interested to know if any of my patients would treat or interact with me any differently if they knew that what i was looking forward to after work is sucking a big fat dick. the patient/doctor relationship is really complex and so many subtle things can change the interaction dramatically, so would my sexuality be one of those things? i usually get along pretty well with my patients, so i wonder what a little randomized trial of patients knowing my preference vs. not knowing would have on their overall opinion after their evaluation. and if they were really critically ill and there were no one else around, would they consent to be treated by me? i bet there are some people out there who would rather die than be treated by a homo. but what about the opposite, what if a gay-hater had their life saved and then at the end found out it was because a gay doc had helped them? would their whole world be turned upside down? who knows.

it is interesting that while i could face discrimination from my patients, i could never do the same in reverse. can you imagine the shitstorm that would happen if some doctor refused to treat a woman, a christian, an anti-semitic, a racist, a prostitute, a drunk, a homeless, a lesbian, a morbidly obese, or whatever? we no matter what are supposed to be a neutral party and every patient that walks in we treat the same regardless of what their personal life or views are like. and really shouldn't that be the way it is for everyone?


3 comments:

  1. No, it shouldn't, because treating every patient is your JOB. And it's A&E's job to keep their business running, and keeping on someone with views like that and a time like this is bad for business. Also, by saying we should all just get along or accept all views as morally equal is akin to colorblindness when talking about race. Being nice and being quiet don't get you your fucking rights.

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  2. Of course you being gay should not matter -- what you do professionally vs. privately should not be a factor, as long as you keep those boundaries. However, that's the rational view and we all know that people will react in different ways and for some, it may be an issue. And you know what? If they push it and don't want gay doctor, I would withdrawal cause who wants to deal with that? It's their choice. In an emergency though, practical matters will probably overtake whatever preference they may have.

    Also -- do patients wonder what their straight doctors do with their sex lives? Probably not, so it should not be their concern with you.

    To shift topics, what are your holiday plans? Will you have to work? I hope you have a merry christmas.

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  3. There is an ideal world and reality. I agree, it'd be nice if everything were a two-way street. But truth is, we as doctors are hold to rather high professional and ethical standards. It can be a burden and part of the job description. Sometimes it'd be nice to just be a bit more human . . .

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