Picture the kindly doctor who seemed to have all the time in the world to solve medical ills, did so with a smile on his face, was highly respectful of his patients, made housecalls, and never seemed to ask for money.
That was Marcus Welby, MD.
Except that he didn't really exist. He appeared only on TV, in the guise of Robert Young, from 1969 to 1976 and spoke to generations of those who wished their doctors were so skilled and kindly, too.
Whether you remember Marcus Welby or not, you may be interested in some of the contrasts to today's practice of medicine:
- Dr. Welby and his young assistant, Steven Kiley (played by James Brolin) were both white males. Today, fewer than 50% of American physicians are white male. The numbers of women and minorities in medicine rise annually.
- Drs. Welby and Kiley had one assistant, Consuelo (played by Elena Verdugo.) Today's practices employ not just nurses and other medical assistants, but additional staff members just to coordinate office functions, the most important of which is billing for insurance and other payors.
- Dr. Welby spent as much time with the patient as he needed to so the patient was well served, listened to, and comforted. Today's doctor limits time spent with a patient.
- Dr. Welby seemed to be the consumate diagnostician and always seemed to choose the treatment option that worked. His success rate was nearly 100 percent. Today's doctors aren't nearly so accurate. In fact, US government statistics show that between 44,000 and 98,000 Americans die from medical errors, and millions more suffer from them each year.
The list of contrasts could go on. But the bottom line is that we, as empowered patients, need to adjust our expectations. We cannot assume that today's doctors will have the bedside manner, time or success rate we once relied on.
Dr. Welby, sad to say, is not available to help us with our medical care.
