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by eldavido
4441 days ago
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> I am still waiting to meet a patient who comes to the hospital and prefers to have their care rendered by non-physician providers over physicians, or would even settle if there were an option. Attach a price tag to each and find out. Maybe someone who couldn't afford a $500 consultation with an MD could settle for a $250 or $100 consultation with a PA, or an expert system. You really don't know until you experiment, and find out. |
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It is not without ethical concern though. Unfortunately, most patients are not sufficiently informed about medicine to make a rational market choice. (Indeed, outside my specialty, I am not really either, and would seek the advice of a trusted physician friend, which is a luxury most don't have.)
For example, the PA and expert system would not reliably know when they are in over their heads and require an MD. Some subset of people would suffer serious injury or death through no fault of their own other than not having had the information necessary to allocate their funds in a manner most benefiting their interests.