should doctors...?

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A great doctor friend of mine and I were talking the other day. I asked him what he thought was the greatest challenge of medical school and residency.

"keeping yourself healthy and sane, despite the heavy workload, so you can be an example for your patients."

This gave me pause.

We know that to be healthy, people should exercise and eat a proper diet. But do physicians own an even greater responsibility, of being healthy not only for themselves, but also for their patients?

what'd you guys think?

 

[Perrotfish]

You owe it to yourself and your loved ones to be healthy and sane, not your patients.

 

[MediCynical]

reminds me of a thread i started in the lounge.... I was surprised to hear what some had to say:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=737936

 

[Superman1978]

We know that to be healthy, people should exercise and eat a proper diet. But do physicians own an even greater responsibility, of being healthy not only for themselves, but also for their patients?

what'd you guys think?

ONe doctor I shadowed mentioned that unless we "walk the walk" and "talk the talk", our patients won't listen to us. It's kinda hard to take advice about weight loss from a 300 pound physician.

 

[Web MD]

I don't think you would "owe it" to your patients. To yourself and family? Definitely. I think as far as patients are concerned they're probably slightly more likely to listen to your lifestyle advice if you look like you lead a healthy lifestyle, but really if they don't have the drive it's going to be hard for you to give it to them no matter how ripped you are

 

[NickNaylor]

You don't "owe it" to your patients, but I do think there would be a benefit to serve as a good example. As a patient, wouldn't you find it difficult to take weight loss advice from an obese doctor? I would.

 

[Perrotfish]

ONe doctor I shadowed mentioned that unless we "walk the walk" and "talk the talk", our patients won't listen to us. It's kinda hard to take advice about weight loss from a 300 pound physician.

No one is listening to you in any event. Your patients, with a few exceptions, will most see you as a biotechnican rather than an educator. If they are genuintely ignorant about what they need to do to fix themselves (for example, a newly diagnosed diabetic) then your education and encouragement might make a huge difference but it's a very rare fat person who is going to suddenly start self-improving because you point out the fact the (s)he shouldn't need double doors to get into buildings.

 

[YaBoyAR]

You don't "owe it" to your patients, but I do think there would be a benefit to serve as a good example. As a patient, wouldn't you find it difficult to take weight loss advice from an obese doctor? I would.

agreed... just like i doubt i'd listen to a derm specialist with acne

 

[astrocreep96]

I have a hard time taking advice on health issues from any individual who is obese or smokes, physicians included. So, yes, I think doctors should be relatively healthy.

 

[sonia1177]

The only way you can remain healthy and happy is if YOU want to do it, not if you do it for others and patients. But yes, I agree with the others that you should do it for you (doing it for others will never work because you can only really be successful things if you have an internal justification for it, not an external justification, which would mean doing it for friends and family). Friends and family can serve as encouragement to remain healthy (older people wanting to be alive and healthy to see grandchildren, etc.) but not as core reasons as to why you want to remain healthy. If a really obese, unhappy, unhealthy doctor looked at me and told me I needed to eat healthier, etc, I would take the advice but would nonetheless find it ironic that he doesn't even take his down advice. In a sense, I do believe doctors should practice what they preach.

 

[Dianyla]

it's a very rare fat person who is going to suddenly start self-improving because you point out the fact the (s)he shouldn't need double doors to get into buildings.

😱

 

[Seven of Nine]

Very interesting conundrum. On one hand, the doctor is the example and should follow his or her own advice. But, I've heard of patients who are obese/very self-conscious about their weight and purposefully seek out overweight doctors to avoid being (or feeling) judged. Personally, I value my own health and fitness, but I feel like doctors do need to be relatable... and avoid conveying the ideal image of health. I think it's a hard balance to find with the respect some patients hold for their doctors when the doctors are perceived to be superhuman in their ability to save lives.

 

[surftheiop]

I remember one time I got called back by the nurse at my FP doc's office and I turn the corner to see my doc standing by nurses station eating this massive piece of fried chicken. He looked up sheepishly and said "You never saw that". He is a skinny guy so gave us a good laugh

 

[Longshanks]

agreed... just like i doubt i'd listen to a derm specialist with acne

Yet it has been shown that there is very little if any causal relation between behavior and acne. Even most treatments don't make a grand change, though they do help. So it is not the same situation as with getting health advice from an obese physician, which are clearly related by behavior.


Was hoping the 1k post would be more significant, but oh well, had to speak my mind 😎

 

[mdbound1987]

I think a somewhat overweight doc is ok, but an obese doc isn't. The reason I say this is because there are some somewhat overweight people who have overall better health than a skinny person with a high metabolism and eats fast food every other day. I think an obese doc, however, would just be a horrible example for patients.

 

[typhoonegator]

I'm a doctor, not a shining example of health. I stay fit because I enjoy sports, certainly not because of some moral imperative. Wait until you're 32 hours into a shift and there's donuts at the nurses station. You're gonna want that donut, and you're not gonna want to go to the gym after your shift because you've worked 100 hours this week. Are you going to buck up and skip the donut and go to the gym post-call so you can be a pillar of health for your patients? I'm fairly certain how most residents would answer that question. Multiply that by 4-7 years, and you can see how it can be difficult to be a constant "example for your patients".

When you tell your patients they need to lose weight, 90% will already know that. Being told by a skinny doctor isn't going to make it sink in any easier. Be healthy for you -- or don't. Your decision. You can still be a good, or terrible, physician either way.

 

[Ischemic]

It's all about patient perception and first impressions. And those two things will pretty much lay the foundations to how much credence you give someone. If the first thing you see walking into a hospital is a fat doctor, how likely would you be to follow his orders of dieting and exercise? Plus, being healthy has all the added benefits of you know ... a longer life, being more attractive, etc