The sick doctor

Pilots are forced to rest for a minimum duration before they resume their next flight 'to ensure no accident occurs due to human error as a result of inadequate rest'. Shouldn't a surgeon receive the same consideration. Why is it that we are expected to be active sharp and possess the most acute faculties irrespective of time. Due to a slightly messed up class schedule and theatre times I have recently been attending theatres in the morning skipping breakfast. In a very complicated part of a thyroid surgery my hands started trembling. Whether due to hypoglycemia or nervousness I dont know.  Blurry vision and slight dizziness hit me during an emergency surgery which occurs following a night duty. Both instances are examples of how doctor is incapacitated merely due to a punishing schedule. And this happens world wide. Is it not time we took a stand. Rested our doctors to ensure the output that we get is of maximum quality. Instead we are making medicine more commercial quantity oriented,  longer hours from the doctor resulting in more revenue more patients seen. More service provided. But is inferior service worth it

The semi educated

Three years of practice have brought me in touch with a wide variety of people. Gone has my habit of remembering individuals. Now I categorize my patients arbitrarily. One category very commonly found is the semi educated. These are people with a formal education, and a basic ability to read medical literature. Mind you the ability to read does not translate to the ability to comprehend.
This group will come with diagnosis. They dont come with symptoms but a diagnosis already formed in their head. Curses strike the doctor who does not agree with their diagnosis. A fine example is the manager I work along with. From a television doctor she gathered that she had a thyroid disorder. And I was the 'lucky doctor' she approached. Despite my reassurance she insisted that I test her. Following a normal test she insisted that I treat her (I am still stumped as to how to treat a normal thyroid). When I took a stand and refused the medicate she of course took a second opinion( which had the same result). Out of her anger at her doctors apparent lack of care she gets her thyroid hormone levels checked monthly. While that in itself is not a problem, me having to tell her every month is really a pain( again a first for me. Getting bad reviews for saying she is fine)