Yeah....they might be "highly skilled" and "highly educated" but what good is all that training if they have no bedside manners and particularly a definite shortage of communication skills and their only real interest in you is their vision of a "cash cow" who will soon foot the bill for their next vacation when they perform my surgery.

Orthopedists in these parts, live in a world of black and white....."black" being statements like "your meniscus is torn"..."you have a rotator cuff problem," and, "white" being "go right to surgery...do not pass "Go," do not collect $200" (as in Monopoly).

I like to function in the "grey zone" where you don't just listen to the diagnosis and head right for surgery. They charge enough money. Is it too much to ask them to take some time to sit and "discuss" other possible treatments BEFORE surgery or a possible "misdiagnosis?"

It seems their allegiance to the Hippocratic Oath has shifted to their allegiance to money, as in....."pay the bill at the desk, and don't let the door hit you on the way out."

I was telling a friend about my experiences. She replied with a great line: "You still don't get it! Orthopedics are like car mechanics. They tell you what's wrong with your car, and hand you the same line..."you can perform surgery on the car"......OR...."live with it! The only actual conversation you actually have with them is the cost of the repair."

Hopefully it's different in other parts of the world, but that's the way it is around here.