22. THIS IS LIKE LYING TO YOUR DAD ABOUT WHAT YOUR MOM SAID
I work in physical therapy and often get expert patients who don’t want to trust my judgment as a clinician. They are so certain their doctor gave them instructions that are far from what is clinically safe or recommended.
Then when presented with a kind but stern response, they want to make it seem like I haven’t been licensed for many years. At this point in my career, I’ve seen hundreds of hip and knee replacements and even have spoken to most of the big name orthopedic surgeons in my area.
I know what I’m doing and I know what these surgeons expect of me during my physical therapy. If we don’t get the right outcomes they will not send patients to us, so it’s important that we know what we are doing to ensure job security.
I had a patient last week that was giving my co worker a hard time over their weight bearing status, so I stepped in and told them that we have to follow the most recent doctor’s orders regardless of any verbal orders a patient receives.
If the doctor didn’t transcribe an order, it’s not valid. This patient was so sure of themselves, so I called the orthopedist on speaker to confirm the order.
The orthopedist was very angry that they were lying to us and scolded the patient. Apparently they had been pressuring the doctor for increased weight bearing to progress their walking but the doctor had wanted to play it conservative and limit weight bearing for a few more days.
It was pretty gratifying to watch the patient’s reaction and see them scolded for lying.
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