Male or Female Doctor

Thank you for the replies. If in an emergency it doesn't matter as long as they are qualified and know what they are doing.

I agree... except that I don't believe the "in an emergency" clause is necessary. Qualifications above all, followed by personality/respect for their patients. Gender doesn't even register on the list for me.
 
why does the gender matter? As long as they're competent is what's important to me. I've seen doctors, both male and female, that I've been impressed with, and sorely disappointed in
 
why does the gender matter? As long as they're competent is what's important to me. I've seen doctors, both male and female, that I've been impressed with, and sorely disappointed in
Because, generally, everything being equal I prefer conversing with men.
 
Many studies have shown that female doctors are better at listening to patients. Yeah, I know, there is supposed to be no difference between male and females, but dammit, there is. I hate it when my male doctor lets me talk for 10 seconds then tries to offer an opinion and a solution. Typical male behavior. I like ti when a female Doc lets me finish explaining what I am there for.
 
I have a male doctor. He seems competent enough to trust and he knows when I need a specialist. My wife has a female doctor and essentially hates her. But she won’t change physicians. I like doctors who are smart enough to know what they don’t know. They don’t think MD stands for Medical Diety!
 
Don't care at all. My main criterion is having someone who trusts that I am as intelligent as they are.

Not dying to say I’m dumb, but I wouldn’t stand a chance against my neurologists. They’re the smart kids on the Doctor’s playground. With 12 years before they start their fellowships, and some of those lasting 6... I don’t think I’m going to even pretend to be as intelligent as they, about anything medical.

If they ever need a nice phone system or call center setup designed, or a data center, they’re probably smart enough to call me. LOL. But it doesn’t take nearly the brain cells to do those things as what they went through just to get out of school and start practicing.

Imagine. A job where you don’t start practicing it in full until you’re 38. And you paid half a million bucks to get there.

Aviation as a job is crazy. Docs are much crazier. LOL.
 
Honestly, I don’t much care either way, as long as they know which one they are. It might be unwoke of me, but I find it important that my doctor know at least enough biology to figure that one out.
 
Not dying to say I’m dumb, but I wouldn’t stand a chance against my neurologists. They’re the smart kids on the Doctor’s playground. With 12 years before they start their fellowships, and some of those lasting 6... I don’t think I’m going to even pretend to be as intelligent as they, about anything medical.

If they ever need a nice phone system or call center setup designed, or a data center, they’re probably smart enough to call me. LOL. But it doesn’t take nearly the brain cells to do those things as what they went through just to get out of school and start practicing.

Imagine. A job where you don’t start practicing it in full until you’re 38. And you paid half a million bucks to get there.

Aviation as a job is crazy. Docs are much crazier. LOL.

Nate, I may have been unclear. I wasn't suggesting that I require a doctor to treat me as if I knew as much about medicine as they do; that's not what I meant by intelligence. Au contraire, I would hope and require that any doctor I see know a LOT more about medicine than I do! What I don't like is the attitude that some practitioners have, viewing their patients as being unable to possibly comprehend even a portion of their incredibleness. I'm a pretty smart guy... well, at least so I'm told by my parents... lol... and was born with a congenital heart defect. Over my 58 years, I've researched my condition and the heart in general quite a bit, had two major surgeries and quite a few minor procedures, and in general probably know more about the heart than the vast majority of the population, and maybe more than a typical general practitioner. I've been in hospitals, visiting friends or family after procedures, and noticed irregularities (arrhythmias, flutters, 3:1 conductions, unusual P-R intervals, etc) in their trace monitors, and pointed them out to the folks on call. They usually ask what hospital I'm affiliated with, and look kind of sheepish when I tell them I'm a musician. SOoo... when a cardiologist starts talking down to me as if I couldn't understand anything, I get bugged. I KNOW he or she knows a LOT more than I do.. they just need to trust that I am capable of understanding what they have to say and conversing about my health care with them intelligently.
 
Nate, I may have been unclear. I wasn't suggesting that I require a doctor to treat me as if I knew as much about medicine as they do; that's not what I meant by intelligence. Au contraire, I would hope and require that any doctor I see know a LOT more about medicine than I do! What I don't like is the attitude that some practitioners have, viewing their patients as being unable to possibly comprehend even a portion of their incredibleness. I'm a pretty smart guy... well, at least so I'm told by my parents... lol... and was born with a congenital heart defect. Over my 58 years, I've researched my condition and the heart in general quite a bit, had two major surgeries and quite a few minor procedures, and in general probably know more about the heart than the vast majority of the population, and maybe more than a typical general practitioner. I've been in hospitals, visiting friends or family after procedures, and noticed irregularities (arrhythmias, flutters, 3:1 conductions, unusual P-R intervals, etc) in their trace monitors, and pointed them out to the folks on call. They usually ask what hospital I'm affiliated with, and look kind of sheepish when I tell them I'm a musician. SOoo... when a cardiologist starts talking down to me as if I couldn't understand anything, I get bugged. I KNOW he or she knows a LOT more than I do.. they just need to trust that I am capable of understanding what they have to say and conversing about my health care with them intelligently.

Ahh. I lump the above into the category of “listening” in my post. Anybody who won’t listen to a patient has something like what you’re describing above going on in their heads.

That said, I also know they’re going to interrupt if you’re going down some non-starter idea path and just state that it’s not what you’re dealing with, just to save time. That’s okay too.

Especially after what I’ve seen insurance pays some of these folks for office time. Pitiful. It’s no wonder they sometimes have to keep appointments to 15 minutes on the dot in some of these places. The only way to make it work is in volume.

My dogs’ vet has billed more per hour than SOME of the docs I’ve seen have actually gotten paid. (They billed for way more of course, but signed a contract saying they don’t get that rate, somewhere along the line. EOBs are interesting as to what’s billed vs what’s paid and how much flat out fiction is involved.)

I have one EOB here that was billed out as $21,000, place was really paid $4800 per contracted rate, and my out of pocket was $350. That one wins the fiction category so far.
 
This guy just set up shop in his van, down by the river, and is very affordable and an intent listener.....

jack-elam.jpg
 
Could care less if they are a make or a female... I would be more concerned as to where they trained and what boards they have passed... My last colonoscopy, eye exam, and general physical for Basic Med was a female.
 
Short finger prostate exam is a waste of time and a waste of discomfort.
The entire gland needs to be checked & unfortunately it is located deeply.
Prostate exam sucks but if you’re going to get this done, have it done correctly.
Otherwise get a PSA test and skip the digital exam, (not recommended if over 35).
PSA has shown many false positives leading to aggressive diagnostic procedures.
Recommend you find a good urologist and have both PSA & digital exam yearly after age 35.
How do you find a good urologist? Ask an OR Nurse.
 
The reason I prefer a female doctor actually has nothing to do with sexuality or the embarrassment of being seen naked by the opposite sex.

After years of believing this, I then had it confirmed by several published studies; Female doctors are better at listening to your complaint than male doctors.

Now I know it is not PC to attribute innate differences to people due to sex, but I find that observation to be true in almost all cases. I WANT a doctor that will actually listen to me past the first symptom before jumping to a diagnosis, or even extensive testing.
 
Having done two prostate exams now, one male, one female, the girl left me feeling more like a man that he did. Both made me ten-HUT! which was embarrassing.
I'd imagine getting a finger jammed up your hindquarters by a stranger with a glove on is embarrassing pretty much no matter what. I'm 43.
 
Makes no difference to me Male or Female, as long as the sign off my medical to fly.
 
Well, being an old brain dead country Doc and being my daughter is the smartest physician I ever met, I go to her.
I showed her a small growth on my back, that I couldn't see well, she shrugged and said, "It's benign."
I said, "I want a second opinion."
She said "OK, you're ugly too."
 
After years of believing this, I then had it confirmed by several published studies; Female doctors are better at listening to your complaint than male doctors.

Now I know it is not PC to attribute innate differences to people due to sex, but I find that observation to be true in almost all cases. I WANT a doctor that will actually listen to me past the first symptom before jumping to a diagnosis, or even extensive testing.

Your wife listens to you too. It says so in “the literature”
 
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