Having spent three hours in the waiting room at the walk-in centre yesterday, it was finally concluded that my boyfriend "probably doesn't have meningitis."
As far as my boyfriend is concerned, a 'probably' diagnosis is perfectly acceptable. While it may not be a certainity, he is convinced that it is nothing serious and is sufficiently reassured that the likelihood of it being so is very slim. For me, on the other hand, a 'probably' diagnosis is a clear admission of doubt and this hestitation alone is enough to make me worry further. Until the word 'probably' was slipped into the conversation, I was happy to assume that this was just a fever but now I am preparing myself for it to develop into something else.
This difference in attitude got me thinking...should the health service rule out the lesser options before it assumes the worse or is the opposite approach more effective?
I am not an expert on clinical diagnosis and indeed I have a very limited knowledge of how the health service actually works, but as far as I'm concerned, I would like to know that my doctor has categorically ruled out the worst before they diagnose something else. If I am presenting symptoms that could be some sort of throat infection but could also be mengitits, I'd much rather they confirmed it wasn't the latter before being dismissed.
As far as I'm aware, different countries take a different approach to diagnosis in this matter, and I am reliably informed that Spain, for example, will rule out the worst possible conclusion first. This makes a lot of sense to me. If I have little more than a throat infection, a few more days without medication won't do me much more harm, but if I actually have cancer, delaying treatment could be fatal.
The problem with my view, of course, is that this would cost the health service an absoute fortune but for me, as a complete hypochondriac, this approach would be far more reassuring. In an ideal world, every patient could be tested for the most serious diseases without fail, but I'll admit this is unlikely to ever happen.
In the mean time, while my boyfriend is happily taking his antibiotics, I'll sit beside and look after him and all the time hope that he will fine.
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Sometimes you can just tell.
ReplyDeleteMedical professionals are taught to always leave some ambiguity - they can't get sued if they haven't committed. Sometimes you have to look at expression and tone of voice, and read between the lines.