"Sir, this patient is demanding a hysterectomy" my resident doctor told me.
"What does she suffer from?" I asked.
"White discharge due to vaginitis."
I looked at the patient. She looked back at me.
"Why do you want a hysteretomy?" I asked her.
"I am tired of the white discharge" she said. "Remove my uterus."
"But removal of the uterus will not cure you. The discharge is not coming from the uterus. It is coming from the vagina. You have an infection that needs medical treatment."
"I have taken a lot of medicines. They do not work. Remove my uterus."
"Besides not curing you, the operation can have a number of complications for you too" I said. "It can sometimes be fatal. I would not like you to have any of those complications."
"But you perform this operation on other women. You did not advice the other woman just now against having a hysterectomy."
Our outpatient clinic is so crowded that often women overhear counselings not meant for them.
"But I told her about the possible complications" I pointed out.
"If she can have it, then why not me?" she asked stubbornly.
"There is a difference. She needs the operation for the disease she has got, you don't. It is like crossing the road at a busy intersection where the traffic signals are not working. It can sometimes cause a traffic accident. If you have to go somewhere, you have to cross the road, irrespective of the risk of the accident. But if you do not have to any place, you should not go stand in the middle of the road."
I think she understood what I was saying. She took the prescription she was given and went away without any more arguments.
"What does she suffer from?" I asked.
"White discharge due to vaginitis."
I looked at the patient. She looked back at me.
"Why do you want a hysteretomy?" I asked her.
"I am tired of the white discharge" she said. "Remove my uterus."
"But removal of the uterus will not cure you. The discharge is not coming from the uterus. It is coming from the vagina. You have an infection that needs medical treatment."
"I have taken a lot of medicines. They do not work. Remove my uterus."
"Besides not curing you, the operation can have a number of complications for you too" I said. "It can sometimes be fatal. I would not like you to have any of those complications."
"But you perform this operation on other women. You did not advice the other woman just now against having a hysterectomy."
Our outpatient clinic is so crowded that often women overhear counselings not meant for them.
"But I told her about the possible complications" I pointed out.
"If she can have it, then why not me?" she asked stubbornly.
"There is a difference. She needs the operation for the disease she has got, you don't. It is like crossing the road at a busy intersection where the traffic signals are not working. It can sometimes cause a traffic accident. If you have to go somewhere, you have to cross the road, irrespective of the risk of the accident. But if you do not have to any place, you should not go stand in the middle of the road."
I think she understood what I was saying. She took the prescription she was given and went away without any more arguments.
