A good doctor will welcome a second opinion

[Neil Cuadra]

I think that doctors should

• Be confident in any assessment or recommendation they give you.
• Want you to have the same confidence and to have as much information as possible.
• Seek any information they can get about your health condition, diagnosis, and treatment choices, whether it confirms their own recommendations or differs from it.
• Welcome peer review.
• Collaborate with your other medical providers.

For all of these reasons, doctors should support patients who seek second opinions, and in fact should encourage them.

Second opinions may not be necessary for routine and minor issues, but if you've got a serious health concern and are facing chemo, radiation, a transplant, surgery, or something else with major risks and consequences, it's in your best interest to get a second opinion and to be up-front about it with your doctor.

If your doctor recommends against your getting a second opinion, acts insulted that you would seek another opinion, or doesn't review information you provide from other doctors, I think you should get a new doctor. They aren't serving your best interests.

I was reminded of this issue yesterday, when I heard a radio ad for the USC Keck Medical Center here in Los Angeles. It was a testimonial ad, with a patient saying that the Keck doctors are so good that he didn't even want a second opinion. I think that's an unfortunate and misguided ad. We should all know better, and watch out for ourselves by getting second opinions whenever necessary.

[Marlene]

I echo that Neil. I've heard anywhere from 10 -20 % of people are misdiagnosed. A more recent report stated 1 in 20 are, which equates to 12 million people/year in the USA. Whatever the number is, a second opinion is a good idea.

[triumphe64]

Originally Posted by Marlene

I echo that Neil. I've heard anywhere from 10 -20 % of people are misdiagnosed. A more recent report stated 1 in 20 are, which equates to 12 million people/year in the USA. Whatever the number is, a second opinion is a good idea.

Especially for these exotic diseases that are covered on this forum.

[Chirley]

My ex Neurologist became annoyed when I wanted a second opinion. HE decided he didn't want me as a patient....I'm better off without him. Unfortunately there seems to be a "closed shop" attitude here and now I can't find a Neurologist who will take me on as a patient and I am on the waiting list for a Public Hospital appointment (they can't refuse to treat you). The wait is 4-5 years. This is a large country (physically) but doctor numbers are tightly controlled by the doctors themselves to reduce competition between them. The side effect is that the patient doesn't get much choice.

[evansmom]

Couldn't agree more Neil, good doctors want what's best for their patients.

[Marlene]

I'm surprised they can get away with that behavior Chirley. I guess what's more troubling is that they think it's ok to do that. John's mother is caught up in some stuff right now. She does not live near us and it makes it difficult to help out. But we are finding that if they cannot figure out what the cause of her pain is, they are more than willing to blame her instead. And since she's in her 80's, they pretty much dismiss her. They are more than willing to pass her off to someone else instead of sticking with her to figure stuff out. Very frustrating.


I am so glad your GP is helping you out and that you really good at advocating for yourself.

[Chirley]

I didn't even realise that this had happened. It was very subtle. I asked for a second opinion, the Neuro found out from my haem in a letter. Next time I went to make an appt with the Neuro I was told by his secretary that he would ring me. He rang two weeks later and said that I didn't need to see him. I assumed that my condition was stable and that I really didn't need to see him. A year later I started having a new problem with my left leg going completely numb. I rang to get an appt with the Neuro, his secretary told me that he didn't want to be my doctor any more and I should find some one else. Turns out I was meant to be seeing a Neuro but this one was just too much of a coward to tell me to my face that he didn't want to continue my care. The Psychiatrist I went to told me he had written in my chart that I had decided to seek advice elsewhere. All I did was ask for a second opinion....which I never got anyway.

So my GP referred me to another Neuro and after a 6-7 month wait, she didn't even examine me. She read the referral letter which stated that I had been seen by this other Neuro and she immediately said that she knew nothing about my disease and I need to go back to my original Neuro and apologise! Apologise!.....for asking for a second opinion....not a chance. I know that the Neuros in my city know about me because I had a paper presented about me at their Congress of Neurologists...it's not as if I can be discreet and pretend I never went to this Neuro.....he let a lot of people know he diagnosed me and earned a lot of accolades for it.

[Marlene]

Quite a story Chirley. Hard to believe that doctors are so insecure. But from what I hear from others, Neurologists seem to be most troublesome for folks. Very few are happy with their Neuro.

As I type this, my mother in law is on her 8th admission in six weeks. She's not in any place long enough to even get a plan in place. It all started with back pain and went downhill from there.

[Chirley]

Yes...one of the emergency medicine doctors I used to work with told me that...neurologists are to Medicine what Orthopaedic Surgeons are to surgery. They both have reputations that precede them.

I hope your mother in law gets some answers shortly. I found with my mother, it was difficult to get doctors to investigate properly due to her age. I've stopped agitating for treatment for my Mum and now I just insist that Mum is kept pain free and happy. Despite her multiple comorbitities she is now considered one of the best responders in her dialysis unit. They are considering changing her from three times a week to twice a week. About a year and a half ago, I rang my mothers nephrologist and told him straight out that I thought his care was very poor and he needed to improve. According to the nurses in his unit, he has stopped being so arrogant and God like and now sees his patients every day. My mother now likes him and he tells my Mum she is his best patient....sometimes doctors just don't realise how they are perceived unless someone tells them. I was very frightened of being so blunt with him but my mother was more important to me than what this doctor thought of me. Thank goodness, the blunt honest approach worked. This doctor even told my mother recently that I was a "good advocate" for her. I have to admit it's difficult to know when to stop pushing for investigations and answers and when to settle for best quality of life possible.

[Marlene]

I remember the trouble you had with your mom. I'm glad it settled down. And I think you are correct...some docs don't see how their behavior has an impact on people and no one tells them.

It's not looking good for his mom so he's flying out tomorrow. At least she's in a different hospital and they are taking much better care of her.

Thanks for your concern.