"Doctor, they have sent me to you from the cancer hospital" the patient said. I was surprised. Usually we sent them patients for management. This seemed to be an exception.
"What is the problem?" I asked.
"I have white discharge and pain in lower abdomen" she said. It looked like pelvic infection and vaginitis.
"Do you have itching of the private parts?" I asked. It may seem like a little too personal question. But it is essential with the symptom of white discharge, and no patient of ours has found it embarrassing.
"Yes" she said.
So it looked like I was right. I examined her and confirmed that she had both of those conditions. I gave her appropriate advise and prescribed her specific medicines to cure her conditions.
"Why did you go to the cancer hospital?" I asked her.
"I had this white discharge, and my local doctor said it could be cancer" She said.
"Show me the reports from the cancer hospital" I said. She did so. They had checked her Pap smear, done a test for Human Papilloma Virus, and performed a cervical biopsy. Thus they had ruled out cervical cancer and referred her to a gynecologist. They had spent a lot of money, specialist time (clinician and pathologist included) both of which were wholly unnecessary. All of their and the patient's troubles would have been avoided if she had gone to a gynecologist primarily.
When I narrated this story to a friend, he asked "why did this happen?"
"That happened because a superspecialist is very focused on his work, and cannot see beyond. Then he misses out a lot of things that a specialist or even a family physician would pick up more easily."
"What is the problem?" I asked.
"I have white discharge and pain in lower abdomen" she said. It looked like pelvic infection and vaginitis.
"Do you have itching of the private parts?" I asked. It may seem like a little too personal question. But it is essential with the symptom of white discharge, and no patient of ours has found it embarrassing.
"Yes" she said.
So it looked like I was right. I examined her and confirmed that she had both of those conditions. I gave her appropriate advise and prescribed her specific medicines to cure her conditions.
"Why did you go to the cancer hospital?" I asked her.
"I had this white discharge, and my local doctor said it could be cancer" She said.
"Show me the reports from the cancer hospital" I said. She did so. They had checked her Pap smear, done a test for Human Papilloma Virus, and performed a cervical biopsy. Thus they had ruled out cervical cancer and referred her to a gynecologist. They had spent a lot of money, specialist time (clinician and pathologist included) both of which were wholly unnecessary. All of their and the patient's troubles would have been avoided if she had gone to a gynecologist primarily.
When I narrated this story to a friend, he asked "why did this happen?"
"That happened because a superspecialist is very focused on his work, and cannot see beyond. Then he misses out a lot of things that a specialist or even a family physician would pick up more easily."
