How to choose a doctor?

The essence of life on earth is “VARIETY.” I feel it’s our inherent gene to be ‘variable’ and to find variance in all aspects of life.

Glasser’s choice theory states that ‘for all practical purposes, we choose everything we do.’ We choose the best ‘bar soap’ from the variety of options, possibly the best suited to us. We exercise our choice right from choosing our spouse, buying our shoes, choosing a school for our children, finding the best hospital and nowadays even the best possible doctor. Rather I would say we choose the most ‘apt’ one as per our convenience, stature or our own persona.

I had a patient visit me recently, who was referred to me by another happy, satisfied patient, for low back pain. I suggested her medications in the form of tablets and told her to visit me after a week.

She pleadingly said “Please give me the same injection you gave my friend and my pain will go away.”

Pain management cannot be uniform and needs to be individualized. ‘Same size doesn’t fit all’ as the colloquial phrase goes.

Each patient coming with pain or for that matter, any health symptom, has a different clinical spectrum. They are many reasons for this and I will share a three of them with you here.

Pain threshold – Each patient perceives the same pain differently and also to a different extent. Scientifically speaking its because of varying sensitivity to pain. Females are poorly blessed as they perceive more pain but are blessed as God has given them the strength to bear it too.
Pharmacogenomics – Genes in our body cause us to respond differently or even not respond to the same medication. The same medication which used to work earlier may not work anymore now if taken for a long time due to a condition called tolerance.
Body morphos – Built and structure of the patients are different. Even different parts of our body need to be managed differently. The doses of the medications also change based on height, weight etc. Google doctor baba doesn’t inform you that!!!

Hence your treating physician after seeking your complaints and thoroughly examining you might advice you the best possible therapy ranging from medications, exercise, physiotherapy, interventional pain procedures, meditation/mindfulness or even alternative medicine like Ayurveda or Tai-chi. So let him/her make a choice for you and not vice versa.

Aha! Coming to the question “How to choose a doctor?” I don’t know the answer and I avoid giving tips. Ha Ha! But my advice would be for you to choose a doctor(and not a reputed hospital as we usually go for) with the following characteristics –

He/she gives you a patient hearing,

Understands your symptom,

Allays your anxiety

Treats you effectively. (not necessarily speedily)

Dr. MILON V. MITRAGOTRI