* * Anonymous Doc

Thursday, February 25, 2010

I had a patient today in the clinic, she comes in, I'm taking her history, I ask her what medication she takes, and she names some bizarre diet drug. I Google it while I'm talking to her, and the first link is to some article saying it's a pyramid scheme. So I asked her, why are you taking this drug?

"It helps me lose weight."

"Oh. How much weight have you lost?"

"I used to be 165 pounds. I was down to 110 pounds."

I look at her. She isn't 110 pounds, or anything close. "What do you weigh now?"

"115 pounds."

I look at her chart. "The scale said you weigh 152 pounds."

"Yes, it is my clothing. It is heavy. At home, I weigh 115 pounds."

"I'm not sure your scale at home is working correctly. Your clothes don't weigh 40 pounds."

"Yes, I weigh 115 pounds."

"I'm not sure you do."

"Yes, I do."

I decided it was better to move on at that point....

1 comment:

  1. hey doc, somehow ended up here reading your blog...im a male RN in OKC, work with a lot of residents and interns...must say i wouldnt want your job...but at times i dont want mine either...cause u said u looked at 50 vaginas in the past six months, hell i see nearly that many in a week...of course not under as close of scrutiny as you likely look at them...well i wish the best for you, and just a pointer coming from a nurse, your bedside manner really defines who you are in a patients eyes and mind, it allows them to become comfortable with you and open up to really tell you what is going on...of course there is always an exception to the rule...take it easy

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