Myths abound in the world of medicine, but while most of these old wives tales are harmless, some can endanger the health of you and your family. Can you answer the following questions with certainty? Are older doctors really better? Are more tests a sign of better care? Do antibiotics kill everything? This week, Dr. Samantha Collier, HealthGrades' chief medical officer and Dr. Richard May, HealthGrades senior physician consultant separate fact from fiction.
Myth #1: Older is better
Don't count out the newbies. Recent medical school graduates have just experienced the intensity and rigors of training and may provide better care than you think. Conversely, the longer a doctor has been out of residency, the less familiar he or she is likely to be with the latest medical technology, cutting edge techniques, and treatment innovations.
Myth #2: The more tests the better
There's a fine line between the appropriate number of tests and too many. Just because your doctor orders more tests doesn't mean he or she is thorough. In fact, it may mean the doctor could be incompetent and doesn't know what's wrong with you, so he or she is trying to narrow it down by testing, testing, testing. The majority of diagnoses usually are identified from your exam and medical history, not tests. Tests usually confirm or rule out a diagnosis. Basing a diagnosis solely on test results can be irresponsible because not only can a test yield false positives and cause undue anxiety, but they also can lead to more invasive testing and procedures for the patient.
Myth #3: Antibiotics kill just about everything
Don't mistake a prescription-happy doctor with a high-quality one. Just like lab tests, more prescriptions don't mean better care, especially when it comes to antibiotics. It can be hard to hear this when you've been sick as a dog for days, but antibiotics do not work on viral infections. No responsible physician will write a patient a prescription for antibiotics unless history, a physician exam, and sometimes tests prove the illness is caused by bacteria. Many patients confuse viral illnesses with bacterial illnesses. For example, viruses cause the common cold and many upper respiratory ailments. Viruses do not respond to antibiotic medications. Bacteria do. Taking antibiotics when you do not need them can cause bacteria to mutate into drug resistant monster strains that no drug can treat.