GruntDoc:
Nobody should support this bill. I’ve said so before. And to remind everyone, I’m a doctor who owns a gun.
Your doctor harasses you about guns? Stand up, walk out, get another doctor. Tell your shooting friends to avoid that doc. That’s fine. Look, if you own a gun, ostensibly for self defense, but cannot say ‘no’ to a question you think is out of bounds you need to sell your gun. Use the money to buy a sign that says “Please don’t hurt me, I’m unarmed (and don’t ask me questions in an offensive manner either)”.
posted by Helen at 8:55 AM
38 Comments:
What's this habit that many doctors have of also giving you advice on every facet of your life?
That arrogance can only result from the fact that big chunks of the population think they know everything. It's just unfathomable to me, but there it is.
Some can even carry the arrogance through a major malpractice suit, but most don't. The former are pretty much the biggest dicks I've ever seen on the planet.
The directive came from the Pediatrics umbrella organization, well that is how I heard about it when my pediatrician brought up the subject once. They asked if the guns were loaded and I said "Hell yes they are loaded. What would I do with an unloaded gun, throw it at the murderer?"
I stole that from G. Gordon Liddy.
They never asked me about guns again.
Trey
Trey, I may have to steal your line that you stole from G. Gordon Liddy.
I'm ambivalent about this proposed law. On one hand, I don't like government stepping in as a general matter to restrict communications. On the other hand, it's absolutely none of the doctor's business whether you have firearms in your house, and entirely irrelevant to treating your kid's strep throat.
The interesting thing, though, is that the medical profession is highly regulated at the state and federal levels anyway, and there are all manners of things you can't say or do with regard to patient care. It's interesting that people are squealing about this one, when the regulation of doctors and their patient interactions is nothing new.
Hum... The last time I was posed this question on a form (my initial visit to a particular doctor), I answered "No, but it's none of your business."
He did apologize, but claimed that he was required to ask by the insurance companies.
Who's responsible for standing up to them? Why, we all are.
Where I live asking someone if they own a gun would get a "yes" about as often as asking them if they owned a car. The truth that when secnds count the police are ony minutes away is quite obviouis in rural America.
I bought my first pistol a few weeks ago, primarily for home protection and to carry on walks and bicycle rides. You never know what kind of animals my pop out of the woods. Bears and mountain lions have been reported in my county. I've seen a bobcat on my back porch and in my front yard. Plus a wild dog or coyote is always a possibilty.
As for doctors, my doctor made enough mistakes in my treatment for me to go elsewhere. Simple stuff like incorrectly running glucose test and such. We could save a lot of lives if doctors policed themselves better.
I think I'll use Trey's response if asked. I keep my gun unloaded but the clip and gun within reach of each other.
Folks sure are touchy on this subject!
Heck, the only questions a doc asks me is if I have medical coverage. If you own guns, and a doc asks, and if you have young kids, he is probably only trying to make sure you are being safe with a loaded gun. I see no harm in that. That is his job as a baby doctor...sure. You know what to do. But how many children have been killed by loaded guns in their homes.
Relax. No one trying to take your gun away from you.
But how many children have been killed by loaded guns in their homes.
Fewer than the number killed on bicycles.
As I said, doctors would save more lives by upping the quality of their care. It's not a safey issue. It's a busy body, nanny state issue.
"Fewer than the number killed on bicycles."
--
And a LOT fewer than have been killed by malpractice on the part of doctors. Even considering the very small percentage of cases that actually come to light.
bureaucracy = chaos.
and remember kiddies, whatever you do on the right of the equation, you must do to the left.
but...enough about math, which many have issues with, the narrative is this; the doctor`s visit became more chaotic because of the questions bureaucracy asked him to ask his patients.
fankly, i don`t think he cared much whether you had a howitzer pointed at the crib, he just needed to satisfy his legal requirements as a licenced practitioner.
many doctors will tell you that their paperwork brings them to tears...not that i`m defending all medical behaviour.
My doctor asked me if I had a gun in the house. I told her I didn;t need one because I have 6 pit bulls.
I think this was already decided dur-
ing the Reagan administration. The issue then was the FEDS telling an
MD that abortion could not be discussed with patients who had their care paid for by the FEDS.
MR Justice Souter asked the Solicitor General if he really thought that the FEDS could regulate conversations between a doctor and a patient. S Court said they could not.
I would no more tell my doctor if I owned firearms than I would tell the local busybody bureaucrats if I owned 6 pit bulls!
Such omissions can have consequences. Like a visit from an armed government team of one sort or another.
What worries me about the dismissive tone of the linked post towards those who worry about invasive questions from physicians is that they have too much power, and it is growing -- thanks to insurance companies.
Hence the above comment:
He did apologize, but claimed that he was required to ask by the insurance companies.
We are fast approaching a point where lying to a doctor is insurance fraud if it isn't already. Insurance fraud is a crime. And when a doctor is required to ask, how far is that from the patient being required to answer?
When doctors have that kind of power, the only redress people have is with legislation. So I am not inclined to dismiss out of hand the concerns of people who feel they need a law. They may!
"If you own guns, and a doc asks, and if you have young kids, he is probably only trying to make sure you are being safe with a loaded gun. I see no harm in that."
Me neither fred. It is when the Doctor, who does not shoot, does not have a carry permit, and who has not gone to a gun safety class was instructing me on how to be safe with my guns, and giving me bad advice, that I got a little cross. Being safe with a gun is absolutely crucial, but if the doc knows nothing about that topic, what do they have to offer?
Trey
“Relax. No one trying to take your gun away from you.”
I am reminded of a scene in the movie Mars Attacks, where the Martians are roaming the streets, massacring Earthlings left and right while translated messages are blaring from their loudspeakers: “Do not run! We are your friends!”
True story from two decades ago. My oldest was born by an emergency C-Section. The OB-Gyn was assisted by the doc who would become our pediatrician. When the doctors finish scrubbing, they came in talking about their gun collections and sustained that through most of the procedure. It made me smile.
eventually insurance companies will run our entire lives.
we can`t get on city parks now to play casual pick-up soccer before the season starts in may becuae soemone might get hurt...
...christ, i`m fifty. i get hurt every time i run around after the ball, but i don`t make claims for physio and accupuncture and rmt....or hold the city liable for my sore whatever, but some do unfortunately and i guess the city has to protect it`s legal self from stupid humans....
pretty soon we will need a licence to access the sidewalks.
There is a lot of pressure on doctors now about guns. The CDC has decided this is a health issue and lots of primary care docs are being told they have to ask and try to get people to get rid of guns if children are in the home, sort of like smoking. Besides, half of all new doctors are women who are less likely to know about guns.
Michael K 10:53 PM, April 01, 2011 “The CDC has decided this is a health issue and lots of primary care docs are being told they have to ask and try to get people to get rid of guns if children are in the home, sort of like smoking. Besides, half of all new doctors are women who are less likely to know about guns.”
As with many liberal schemes, it’s ostensibly all about “the children”.
So, now children will be encouraged to inform on their parents, like good little Stalinists.
Fred, you know better than that. Of course there are many who want to take all the guns away. I forget the Japanese General's name, but his biggest fear, and reason for not attacking the U.S. directly with boots on the ground, are the bitter clingers with guns and religion.
About the pit bulls, it was April first, OK? Forget the dog, beware of the owner.
br549, I believe that statement is attributed to Admiral Yamamoto, saying that they would not invade the US mainland because there would be a "rifle behind every blade of grass."
Fred, your assertion that "No one trying [sic] to take your gun away from you" is rank nonsense. There are entire organizations such as Handgun Control Inc. and others whose endgame is that very thing, as well as numerous left-wing politicians who share the same goal.
OT.
Hi Helen. I just found a fantasic blog. You might want to have a look!
Best Regards
Peter
http://maggiemcneill.wordpress.com/
WTF? What the hell does a doctor need to know if you own a gun for?
Its just the Illuminati trying to find out if you have a gun. Heres the thing. Guns are LAWFUL and you do not need to tell ANYONE you own a gun.
My claim of right has never been challenged and I include the right to carry whatever weapons I choose in it.
Fortunately no doctor has asked me this question yet. If they do, I'll say none of your bleep business, unless they are wanting to compare their guns to mine and go to the shooting range with me.
If the AMA and similar groups want to reduce death and crippling in the US, there's a better issue to address: The doctors who kill and cripple patients AFTER these doctors have clearly shown incompetence beforehand.
In some states, you have to kill more people than Ted Bundy to have your license yanked.
The cases that actually come to light are an extremely small percentage of the actual cases in which doctors fuck up. Sometimes you have to get a whistleblower even if there are strong suspicions that the doctor did something wrong and covered it up.
If the true facts about physician incompetence were clearly shown to the public, the idiotic doctor worship that goes on today would disappear.
Our own government doesn't want its citizens armed any more than the Japanese military did.
Look at major causes of death in children according to the WHO and elsewhere. Automobiles and swimming pools, stairs, bicycles, school crosswalks, unlocked under - the - sink kitchen cabinets need to be banned long before guns.
The biggie is abortion though. I mean, if stats are what you want to see, Fred.
br549 10:29 AM, April 03, 2011 “Look at major causes of death in children according to the WHO and elsewhere.”
The WHO (the UN scumbags, not the rock band) classifies violence (and firearms) as a preventable health problem that can be solved. They have a global gun control agenda.
br549 10:29 AM, April 03, 2011 “Automobiles and swimming pools, stairs, bicycles, school crosswalks, unlocked under - the - sink kitchen cabinets need to be banned long before guns.”
Don’t worry, they are working on those, too. As well as tobacco, alcohol, fattening foods, incandescent light bulbs, carbon dioxide, capitalism, etc.
Won’t you join your comrades in marching forward and winning the future?
My doctor asked my advice about a good gun for his wife (also a doc). I also offered to teach her how to shoot it, but he said he could handle that.
Of course, we live in Texas, where everybody understands these things.
Ask your doctor about the acronym "PDNA" (patient did not answer) if you're uncomfortable answering instrusive questions. If he asks you one of those questions, and you answer PDNA, he HAS to enter that on the form. Don't offer to explain it. If it's a Y/N checkbox, tell him to leave it blank. He has to do that, too.
"Ask your doctor about the acronym "PDNA" (patient did not answer) ..."
Why?
Just don't answer it. Go elsewhere if the physician is a dick.
Ask your doctor about the acronym "PDNA" (patient did not answer) if you're uncomfortable answering instrusive questions.
As a long-time nurse, my wife frequently puts the acronym "PITA" at the top of some patients' medical records. It has proved quite useful in several different office settings. If a patient asks about it, she says it's an insurance code. In fact, it stands for "Pain in the Ass" and is used to warn of difficult patients.
Larry J
Funny stuff. I hear there's one that originated in England called PRATFO: Patient Reassured And Told to F*** Off.
The last time I talked to a doctor about guns was when he asked for shooters to fill out his squad.
Words Twice, you obviously don't know me.
Does the term "blow me" have any significance for you?
br549 9:06 PM, April 03, 2011 “…you obviously don't know me.”
LOL I think I do.
br549 9:06 PM, April 03, 2011 “Does the term "blow me" have any significance for you?”
I’m going to chalk this up to your thin skin, an itchy trigger finger and poor grasp of sarcasm.
My comments were not meant as an attack on you, although I see how they might be interpreted that way.
I take the Navy's line on nuclear weapons aboard ship when the question of guns comes up. "I will neither confirm nor deny the presence, or not, of any particular kind of weapon in my home. Draw your own conclusions."
Thanks for the link! GruntDoc
Allen,
Sure, keep up the good work!
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