My friend Rachael has a large lump behind her
knee. Her orthopedist diagnosed it as a benign
tumor, but told her they need to keep an eye on
it. She should return in three months, then six
months, then nine months and so forth. They will
image it each time to see if it has grown. If it
does grow, they will need to make some different
decisions.
Rachael casually mentioned her diagnosis to me.
“You WILL get a second opinion, won’t you?” I
responded.
Rachael said she really hadn’t thought about a
second opinion. She explained that she had seen
THE orthopedist in town, she trusted him, and
she was confident he was right.
I was flabbergasted. I asked her how she could
know he was right? After all, he had given her
two possible diagnoses for her tumor, and there
are differences in treatment. It’s also possible
it could be malignant. Waiting months, only to
learn the tumor has grown or is malignant, would
be horrible!
Rachael is like the majority of patients. She
thinks that since she trusts her doctor, then
her doctor must be right.
In the perfect world it would work just that
way.
Unfortunately, just because a doctor seems
trustworthy doesn’t always mean that doctor is
right. We don’t live in a perfect world. We live
in a world where even the best doctors make
diagnostic mistakes. In our world, doctors are
hurried and sometimes miss evidence. In this
same world, they are reimbursed by insurance for
all those images, but not for taking the time to
talk to us.
In our world we must get a second opinion
because we risk too much if we don’t.
A second opinion yields three possible outcomes.
Two doctors might agree on the diagnosis, but
differ on their treatment recommendations. That
gives us more information for decision-making.
Or they may differ on both the diagnosis and the
treatment recommendations. That suggests the
need for a third opinion. Or they may agree on
both the diagnosis and the best treatment, which
provides us with confidence that we’re on the
right track.
Getting a second opinion is always a winning
proposition. Not getting one is a risk that
isn’t worth the potential cost of life or limb.
Is it time for you to get a second opinion, too?
.................................
When Do You Need a Second Opinion?
Finding a Second Opinion Doctor
How to Work with Your Second Opinion Doctor
