Is America Overtreated?

"I don't always go into details about the possible side effects of drugs. I tell them all drugs are poisons with possible beneficial side effects."-Dr Jay Gordon

Last Friday's Talk of the Nation on NPR had a compelling story regarding the overtreatment of American patients.

Perhaps one of the most important points it made was that the onus for overtreatment often rests on the patients and not of the medical professionals. As an RN I can vouch for the fact that often it is the patient demanding drugs, procedures or treatments that they have seen on TV that, while not medically indicated, are what the patient is convinced will save them.

An ER doc friend describes how she has patients come to her Emergency department and ask for the "miracle pill" that is supposed to fix whatever ails them. This doc will call out to the ER nurses and say "do we have any of that miracle pill left." The nurses will reply "no - we're all out this week."

Needless to say, the patients are crestfallen.

The biggest problem with our broken medical system is not the cost of the various treatments, but that we think those treatments are the answer.