Tuesday, January 08, 2008

One Stop Medical Shopping: Convenience and much more

Would you want to get your pap smear and wrinkles filled in by the same doctor? An article in Health explores how more and more doctors are cashing in on cosmetic procedure boom and quotes our founder and blogger on the potential pitfalls:

"This boon for physicians, then, may be a bust for patients, says Kathryn Hinsch, founder of the Women’s Bioethics Project, a public-policy think tank in Seattle. 'A big problem is that any doctor with very minimal training can perform these procedures, so the potential safety issues are high...Part of the fundamental trust between a patient and doctor is the idea that the doctor has the patient’s best interest at heart, and that there is no financial incentive for the doctor to perform any procedure,' Hinsch says. 'When doctors start adding cosmetic procedures, which they’re adding because they’re big moneymakers, there’s a corruption of that basic trust.'

For more on what the article and what Kathryn had to say about this, click here.

1 comment:

Sue Trinidad said...

Also: adding such procedures to gynecology serves to reinforce the public perception and acceptance of cosmetic surgery as a normal part of women's healthcare. Something like, gynecologists do, you know, "women's stuff": pelvic exams, pregnancy, liposuction, Botox.....