Are medical shows tainting premeds?

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larpleston

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larpleston said:
Will the glorification of medicine in these shows decrease job satisfaction when some of the premeds that watch them become doctors?

I'm not saying that all of the people that watch these shows are going to come away with any impression of medicine, but the people who are swayed by them would seem to be much more likely to have a glamorized view.
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I don't watch TV shows at all, but one resident I shadowed told me that her life was very similar to that depicted in Grey's Anatomy. I wonder if that's a good thing or a bad thing (I've never watched it) :laugh:
 
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That resident must have had an interesting personal life. But I didn't get fooled by medical shows because I had already been fooled by high school shows. Now THOSE are the ones that aren't based in reality.
 
larpleston said:
Will the glorification of medicine in these shows decrease job satisfaction when some of the premeds that watch them become doctors?

I'm not saying that all of the people that watch these shows are going to come away with any impression of medicine, but the people who are swayed by them would seem to be much more likely to have a glamorized view.
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the stupid will be punished.
 
Jemainelover said:
But I didn't get fooled by medical shows because I had already been fooled by high school shows. Now THOSE are the ones that aren't based in reality.
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Come on now, Saved by the Bell was a fantastic, true-to-life representation of the perils that plague high school students. Take the episode where Jessi Spano gets addicted to caffeine pills. That's some real life **** right there.

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bflYjF90t7c[/YOUTUBE]
 
I hope I meet someone like House one day...
 
If TV is "tainting" doctors, it's no more than it's tainting every other profession that has a TV show devoted to it.
 
The only one I really hope it will be like is House...

Sometimes I think about breaking my leg just to see if I end up smarter...
 
DrYoda said:
If TV is "tainting" doctors, it's no more than it's tainting every other profession that has a TV show devoted to it.
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I know of no other profession that has the same number of shows devoted to it. Come to think of it, I can't think of any other shows that are about a job.
 
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DrYoda said:
If TV is "tainting" doctors, it's no more than it's tainting every other profession that has a TV show devoted to it.
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I definitely had a period in my life where I wanted to be a lifeguard...and wonder why? :D
 
DrWookie said:
The only one I really hope it will be like is House...

Sometimes I think about breaking my leg just to see if I end up smarter...
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House is smart right?

Wouldn't the smart thing to do be to just skip the leg and go straight to the morphine? There is all this innuendo that his inspirations come from his being high :laugh:

Enjoy the drugs. Its one of the signs of a great physician imo. Halsted, Cushing all these guys were shooting themselves up with ether and heroin. That's how I knew I was destined to be a doctor. I was an English major and realized
a) I had poor handwriting
b) I love drugs, prescription especially
c) Don't like math
d) Can't control my finances
Which them led to an epiphany. :idea:
 
DrYoda said:
:laugh:. Greetings fellow DR<starwars name>.
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OMG! We should join forces.

I've actually used this name since like middle school....my cousin gave it to me because I wanted to be a doctor and I had long hair.

Both are still pretty much true.
 
MrBurns10 said:
Come on now, Saved by the Bell was a fantastic, true-to-life representation of the perils that plague high school students. Take the episode where Jessi Spano gets addicted to caffeine pills. That's some real life **** right there.

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bflYjF90t7c[/YOUTUBE]
Click to expand...

funniest thing i've read all day.
 
nars etc said:
That said, surgeons are easily the best looking men on the planet in my humble opinion :laugh: No idea why surgery tends to attract such insanely tall, well built and just damn good looking men, but it does. Apparently surgeons are called 'jocks' of the physicians.... I've found that to be very true.
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I swear that I found and read a paper on Pubmed that compared attractiveness between surgeons and internal med physicians. They somehow tied it to the hospital TV shows, too. One conclusion the study came to was that surgeons don't have to worry about carrying so many "tools" with them, whereas the internal guys have a lot of "stuff" to carry and have to contantly walk, bend, whatever to do their job. So physically, surgeons are better built b/c of their environment.

Really interesting stuff. Still can't believe someone did this study.
 
I said morphine, but I think its Vycodin. Oh well, tomato tomahto, some sort of opioid junkie.
 
DrYoda said:
CSI and it's many spin-offs. Flashy, inaccurate show about a ****ty job.
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I've never been able to tell what the characters are doing in that show. One minute they're shooting the bad guys, the next they're combing over evidence.
 
larpleston said:
I know of no other profession that has the same number of shows devoted to it. Come to think of it, I can't think of any other shows that are about a job.
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How about the office? Its about a lot of people doing nondescript, generic, unproductive, red-tape, non-job jobs.

Doesn't that count as a job? :laugh:

I love that show.
 
stevo111 said:
I swear that I found and read a paper on Pubmed that compared attractiveness between surgeons and internal med physicians. They somehow tied it to the hospital TV shows, too. One conclusion the study came to was that surgeons don't have to worry about carrying so many "tools" with them, whereas the internal guys have a lot of "stuff" to carry and have to contantly walk, bend, whatever to do their job. So physically, surgeons are better built b/c of their environment.

Really interesting stuff. Still can't believe someone did this study.
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Haha, yes probably a female nurse. :laugh:
Now no offense, but Ive seen that the male docs tend to be few and far between. All the women in the hospital seem to be throwing themselves at them; nurses, lab techs, residents, fellows, attendings, the female janitor, the female security officer, the 60 yr old volunteer at the gift shop.... the list goes on.

The question is, if surgeons are the jocks, who are the cheerleaders of medicine?
Since everyone knows the cheerleaders and the jocks are in each others pants. :thumbup:
 
larpleston said:
I've never been able to tell what the characters are doing in that show. One minute they're shooting the bad guys, the next they're combing over evidence.
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I love it when they are shown using "flashy" machinery...like a centrifuge and *GASP* a P1000!

I really hope those shows never convinced anyone to go into that business...I don't think it would meet their expectations.
 
DrWookie said:
I love it when they are shown using "flashy" machinery...like a centrifuge and *GASP* a P1000!

I really hope those shows never convinced anyone to go into that business...I don't think it would meet their expectations.
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My pet peeve is when they show like a spectroscope and people's eyes widen in horror or something.

Like its a friggin carboxylic acid or something; have a nice day you loserly lab tech who has to run the spectroscope.
 
DrWookie said:
I love it when they are shown using "flashy" machinery...like a centrifuge and *GASP* a P1000!

I really hope those shows never convinced anyone to go into that business...I don't think it would meet their expectations.
Click to expand...

Have you ever watched them pipette? They actually have tons of bubbles, the incorrect volume, etc. Its ridiculous. They pipette for no reason!

By the way, i can't stand House. All the doctors doing PCR and blood tests. Do they not have a lab staff? What doctor does all the lab work? (note - I spent abotu a year of my life developing a qPCR method so I have no issue with the technique, just the fact that hospitals have labs for a reason)
 
efitzpat said:
Have you ever watched them pipette? They actually have tons of bubbles, the incorrect volume, etc. Its ridiculous. They pipette for no reason!

By the way, i can't stand House. All the doctors doing PCR and blood tests. Do they not have a lab staff? What doctor does all the lab work? (note - I spent abotu a year of my life developing a qPCR method so I have no issue with the technique, just the fact that hospitals have labs for a reason)
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Ya that is one thing I always find funny about House. They do EVERYTHING...there are NO technicians to be found which is always funny. Though at least they on occasion show a nurse coming in the room...I swear Grey's Anatomy never had a nurse outside the OR until that lady who had a crush on McDreamy.
 
efitzpat said:
By the way, i can't stand House. All the doctors doing PCR and blood tests. Do they not have a lab staff? What doctor does all the lab work? (note - I spent abotu a year of my life developing a qPCR method so I have no issue with the technique, just the fact that hospitals have labs for a reason)
Click to expand...

I just wish if they would clarify if it was just a dramatic device (so the characters are doing something interesting in the background when they have their conversations) OR if it's something special about the position they have with House. They seem to waiver back and forth on this point. They also seem to waiver if they're in a fellows or attendings.

ER got really bad about this a few seasons back. They had this weird combined ED/Trauma Surgery thing going where one case they'd be treating some dude for flu and the next room they'd be cracking a chest.
 
MrBurns10 said:
Come on now, Saved by the Bell was a fantastic, true-to-life representation of the perils that plague high school students. Take the episode where Jessi Spano gets addicted to caffeine pills. That's some real life **** right there.

[youtube]bflYjF90t7c[/youtube]
Click to expand...


Hey man, not cool. That episode helped me kick my severe caffeine pill addiction.

Zack saved my life, *******! :mad:
 
DrYoda said:
:laugh:. Greetings fellow DR<starwars name>.
Click to expand...


Do you think I should change my name to Dr.Maul? Loved the guy and his two sided lightsaber(phallic?). Too bad he died, he was easily the coolest character imo.

Either that or Dr.Vader.
 
larpleston said:
Will the glorification of medicine in these shows decrease job satisfaction when some of the premeds that watch them become doctors?

I'm not saying that all of the people that watch these shows are going to come away with any impression of medicine, but the people who are swayed by them would seem to be much more likely to have a glamorized view.
Click to expand...

No, but it sure is creating some pre-meds with a really dumb reason for wanting do be doctors. "I like House, therefore I want to be pre-med."
 
PeepshowJohnny said:
ER got really bad about this a few seasons back. They had this weird combined ED/Trauma Surgery thing going where one case they'd be treating some dude for flu and the next room they'd be cracking a chest.
Click to expand...

ER is the worst. After helicopters started chopping people's arms off, I had to stop watching. It all went downhill after they killed Dr Green with a brain tumor.
 
mmmcdowe said:
No, but it sure is creating some pre-meds with a really dumb reason for wanting do be doctors. "I like House, therefore I want to be pre-med."
Click to expand...

It should be I like Chase, therefore I want to be an intensivist then do an special residency where I get 5 years of surgery done in one year.
 
Wants2give said:
Lets face it brother, anyone that becomes an MD or DO is a far cry from stupid.
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That wasn't the point. Not every entranced pre-med comes out the other end of the tunnel, they realize pretty quick.

larpleston said:
I know of no other profession that has the same number of shows devoted to it. Come to think of it, I can't think of any other shows that are about a job.
Click to expand...

Are you kidding me? :confused:

Cop/Law enforcement shows: NYPD Blue, The Shield, 24, CSI, Hawaii 5-0, Miami Vice, Reno 911!, Starsky and Hutch...etc.

Law shows: Law and Order, JAG, Boston Legal, Ally McBeal, Eli Stone, etc...
 
Medical shows are way out numbered by cop shows. I wonder why that is. Any theories?
 
larpleston said:
I know of no other profession that has the same number of shows devoted to it. Come to think of it, I can't think of any other shows that are about a job.
Click to expand...

It comes and goes in waves. Law had its heyday during the LA law era. Currently there are a lot of physician and forensic investigator shows. Probably more medicine shows on the air at once in primetime than ever before. Folks will get bored of these and some other field will take front and center. Police dramas have been fairly constant.

When LA law was on the air, there was a huge bump in the number of folks who went to law school -- and shortly thereafter a very large number of disenchanted lawyers who realized that it was real work and not the sexy lifestyle folks saw on TV. Some of the same is happening in medicine -- there is a generation of premed folks who spent years watching ER, House, Scrubs, Grey's Anatomy, Nip Tuck etc, and want to live that life. For this reason shadowing has become much more important, because honestly medicine is like none of those shows. You won't be hooking up in the call rooms, you won't be able to be an a-hole to your patients, and most of the cases will be mundane, not exotic.
 
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larpleston said:
I know of no other profession that has the same number of shows devoted to it. Come to think of it, I can't think of any other shows that are about a job.
Click to expand...


uh, lawyers and cops.

Just on the air now:

Damages
Law and Order
Law and Order: SVU
Law and Order: Criminal Intent
CSI
CSI: Miami
CSI: New York
Boston Legal
Criminal Minds
The Closer

Historical:

Ali McBeal
Hill Street Blues
Perry Mason
Columbo
LA Law
 
TV doesn't lie... (best old episode of Simpsons ever haha) :)
 
nars etc said:
Like someone else said, two hours in the ER would cure that glorification.

On the other hand, the only thing that I hope is true of medicine that TV shows portray is the crazy good looking male doctors and surgeons.

I research in a Neurosurgeon's lab and shadow 2 Neurosurgeons (one is the former and one is different). That said, surgeons are easily the best looking men on the planet in my humble opinion :laugh: No idea why surgery tends to attract such insanely tall, well built and just damn good looking men, but it does. Apparently surgeons are called 'jocks' of the physicians.... I've found that to be very true.

Who watches those shows for the medicine anyway. If not by the end of your premed shadowing/volunteer experiences, by MS2 you will definitely discover that the science, patient care, and equipment is all ass backwards, mispronounced, misused, or just wrong. Personally I watch it to see good looking people get it on in the noble name of medicine.

Another thing I love about them is when I (me, fetus premed person) can actually spot a flaw in their science/medicine. That's pretty hilarious, and it makes me feel better about myself :thumbup:

Heck I think everyone should watch these shows. If those dumb*****es can be doctors without even going to college, why can't we?
Click to expand...

So true. Shows like House are actually more enjoyable when you know less. Now I find myself talking to the TV questioning their logic, their presentation of a disease, their treatments, etc. And I'm still a lowly M2 so I suspect it will just get worse as I learn more.
 
Retsage said:
Hey man, not cool. That episode helped me kick my severe caffeine pill addiction.

Zack saved my life, *******! :mad:
Click to expand...
Hey now, who's being sarcastic? I actually own this shirt and wear it proudly frequently. It's the people who actually get it that makes it worthwhile.

bt-imsoexcited-gallery-73.jpg
 
MrBurns10 said:
Come on now, Saved by the Bell was a fantastic, true-to-life representation of the perils that plague high school students. Take the episode where Jessi Spano gets addicted to caffeine pills. That's some real life **** right there.

[youtube]bflYjF90t7c[/youtube]
Click to expand...

Ahahaha
 
nka1985 said:
So true. Shows like House are actually more enjoyable when you know less. Now I find myself talking to the TV questioning their logic, their presentation of a disease, their treatments, etc. And I'm still a lowly M2 so I suspect it will just get worse as I learn more.
Click to expand...

My Dad's a physician and he does the same thing...though he still enjoys them :) (He tapes ER and Grey's every week).

The funny thing about medical shows is...because they don't inherently have the violence and action in the show concept...the ones that get really popular always find silly ways of including it (A man coming into the hospital and shooting a bunch of people etc...) That is how they compete with the cop shows :)
 
If I met the creators of Grey's Anatomy in a dark alleyway, I swear I'd call them names.
 
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