Medical Questionaire

[SmarterThanHick]

Unless my doctor has some reason to believe I'm suffering from an allergy to gunpowder or something of that nature, he has no reason to "screen" for guns in my home, any more than his questionnaire should ask me whether or not I have those little sticky treads in the bottom of my bathtub to keep me from slipping and falling.

If I happen to get a gunshot wound, my primary care doctor will not be the person treating it, so it's really none of his business.

Still false. You can claim parts of your health are none of their business, but as mental health is part of HEALTH and preventative health is a part of HEALTH, you can opt out. Until preventing bad health outcomes and mental health are not part of health, health practitioners will be asking about them.

 

[Cecilie1200]

Unless my doctor has some reason to believe I'm suffering from an allergy to gunpowder or something of that nature, he has no reason to "screen" for guns in my home, any more than his questionnaire should ask me whether or not I have those little sticky treads in the bottom of my bathtub to keep me from slipping and falling.

If I happen to get a gunshot wound, my primary care doctor will not be the person treating it, so it's really none of his business.

Still false. You can claim parts of your health are none of their business, but as mental health is part of HEALTH and preventative health is a part of HEALTH, you can opt out. Until preventing bad health outcomes and mental health are not part of health, health practitioners will be asking about them.

I have news for you, Sparkles: I pay HIM. HE works for ME. As such, NOTHING about me is his business unless and until I choose for it to be. I am not coming to my primary care physician to be babysat, or to have my lifestyle choices analyzed. I am coming to him for the treatment of general, physical diseases, injuries and ailments, or for referral to a specialist if it is beyond his capabilities. There are questions he needs to ask me that relate to my physical health, or to the medications and treatments he might give me for my physical health. Whether or not I own a gun is not among them.

Once again, GPs do not treat mental illness. Many, if not most, health insurances don't even require a referral from a GP for mental health treatment. He needs to stick to what I came there for.

And do not give me that "Well, people with mental health issues might hurt themselves with a gun" rationalization. Women with suicide ideation are statistically more likely to kill themselves with pills or slashed wrists, but doctors don't feel the need to "screen" for whether or not there are razor blades in the house. This is strictly an advancement of a political agenda, and an invasion of privacy.

 

[SmarterThanHick]

I have news for you, Sparkles: I pay HIM. HE works for ME. As such, NOTHING about me is his business unless and until I choose for it to be. I am not coming to my primary care physician to be babysat, or to have my lifestyle choices analyzed. I am coming to him for the treatment of general, physical diseases, injuries and ailments, or for referral to a specialist if it is beyond his capabilities. There are questions he needs to ask me that relate to my physical health, or to the medications and treatments he might give me for my physical health. Whether or not I own a gun is not among them.

Once again, GPs do not treat mental illness. Many, if not most, health insurances don't even require a referral from a GP for mental health treatment. He needs to stick to what I came there for.

And do not give me that "Well, people with mental health issues might hurt themselves with a gun" rationalization. Women with suicide ideation are statistically more likely to kill themselves with pills or slashed wrists, but doctors don't feel the need to "screen" for whether or not there are razor blades in the house. This is strictly an advancement of a political agenda, and an invasion of privacy.

Yes, you do pay him, which is why you can opt out as I mentioned previously. But unless you're paying for his medical education, don't expect things to change. You're wrong. The fact that doctors screen for these things proves you're wrong.

You don't think it's a doctor's professional responsibility to ask about lifestyle choices? Say you come in with a cough. You don't think your doctor should ask about smoking? By your reasoning, doctors should never ask about immunizations. Nor should they ever weigh their patients, or take their blood pressure unless they come in complaining of high blood pressure. hahaha.

As for GPs not treating mental health, you're wrong again. GPs prescribe a large percentage of antidepressants in this country. So all the numbers prove you wrong. But hey, they're just doctors, but you got your education from..... where?

 

[Cecilie1200]

I have news for you, Sparkles: I pay HIM. HE works for ME. As such, NOTHING about me is his business unless and until I choose for it to be. I am not coming to my primary care physician to be babysat, or to have my lifestyle choices analyzed. I am coming to him for the treatment of general, physical diseases, injuries and ailments, or for referral to a specialist if it is beyond his capabilities. There are questions he needs to ask me that relate to my physical health, or to the medications and treatments he might give me for my physical health. Whether or not I own a gun is not among them.

Once again, GPs do not treat mental illness. Many, if not most, health insurances don't even require a referral from a GP for mental health treatment. He needs to stick to what I came there for.

And do not give me that "Well, people with mental health issues might hurt themselves with a gun" rationalization. Women with suicide ideation are statistically more likely to kill themselves with pills or slashed wrists, but doctors don't feel the need to "screen" for whether or not there are razor blades in the house. This is strictly an advancement of a political agenda, and an invasion of privacy.

Yes, you do pay him, which is why you can opt out as I mentioned previously. But unless you're paying for his medical education, don't expect things to change. You're wrong. The fact that doctors screen for these things proves you're wrong.

You don't think it's a doctor's professional responsibility to ask about lifestyle choices? Say you come in with a cough. You don't think your doctor should ask about smoking? By your reasoning, doctors should never ask about immunizations. Nor should they ever weigh their patients, or take their blood pressure unless they come in complaining of high blood pressure. hahaha.

As for GPs not treating mental health, you're wrong again. GPs prescribe a large percentage of antidepressants in this country. So all the numbers prove you wrong. But hey, they're just doctors, but you got your education from..... where?

The fact that doctors have decided to butt into things that are none of their business proves that they actually ARE their business? So if I decide to peep in your bedroom windows, does that mean the number of times you masturbate every day has become "my business"?

Try to understand the difference between "I come in with a cough, and he asks me questions to determine the origin" and "I sign up as a new patient, and his questionnaire asks if I own a gun". Try hard.

If I'm not presenting with a health complaint that is directly related to my owning a gun, like the aforementioned gunpowder allergy, he has no business asking. Owning a gun is not like smoking, or being overweight, or taking medication. It is NOT a "health issue", any more than owning a car is, and my doctor doesn't ask THAT on his questionnaire, either. Your childish paranoia and terror of guns notwithstanding, they are just inanimate objects. By themselves, they just lie there and have no effect on anyone or anything. They don't secrete poison, or emit radioactivity, or anything.

If you are going to a GP who prescribes antidepressants and attempts to diagnose, treat, and monitor mental health issues on his own, he's an idiot and you're an idiot for going to him. Speaking as someone who actually takes antidepressants, I can tell you that I get my diagnoses, prescriptions, and regular monitoring through duly trained and licensed mental health professionals. I would no more let my GP prescribe me psych meds than I would let him operate on me for colon cancer.

 

[SmarterThanHick]

If I'm not presenting with a health complaint that is directly related to my owning a gun, like the aforementioned gunpowder allergy, he has no business asking. Owning a gun is not like smoking, or being overweight, or taking medication. It is NOT a "health issue", any more than owning a car is, and my doctor doesn't ask THAT on his questionnaire, either.

It's hilarious, because doctors ask about cars and car seats ALL the time for child checkups. Along with things like fire extinguishers, fire alarms, and outlet protectors. Again, it's called PREVENTION. It's a part of healthcare you continue to ignore exists. I find it hilarious that you know so little about doctors and their responsibilities that you cited a common issue addressed by one of the most common doctors in the country as not being a health issue.

If you are going to a GP who prescribes antidepressants and attempts to diagnose, treat, and monitor mental health issues on his own, he's an idiot and you're an idiot for going to him. Speaking as someone who actually takes antidepressants, I can tell you that I get my diagnoses, prescriptions, and regular monitoring through duly trained and licensed mental health professionals. I would no more let my GP prescribe me psych meds than I would let him operate on me for colon cancer.

Ah this explains a lot.

 

[dblack]

If I'm not presenting with a health complaint that is directly related to my owning a gun, like the aforementioned gunpowder allergy, he has no business asking. Owning a gun is not like smoking, or being overweight, or taking medication. It is NOT a "health issue", any more than owning a car is, and my doctor doesn't ask THAT on his questionnaire, either.

It's hilarious, because doctors ask about cars and car seats ALL the time for child checkups. Along with things like fire extinguishers, fire alarms, and outlet protectors. Again, it's called PREVENTION. It's a part of healthcare you continue to ignore exists. I find it hilarious that you know so little about doctors and their responsibilities that you cited a common issue addressed by one of the most common doctors in the country as not being a health issue.

Well, I think you're ignoring the actual concerns here, aren't you? With government becoming, more and more, involved in our health care, this becomes a disturbing legal question. How much are our individual health decisions a community issue, as opposed to a personal concern? I agree the specifics of the OP are misguided. This isn't anything new - doctors have been looking to track such statistical info for years. But we are increasingly facing a situation where the state has an strong incentive to dictate our personal health habits. it could get ugly.

 

[SmarterThanHick]

Well, I think you're ignoring the actual concerns here, aren't you? With government becoming, more and more, involved in our health care, this becomes a disturbing legal question. How much are our individual health decisions a community issue, as opposed to a personal concern? I agree the specifics of the OP are misguided. This isn't anything new - doctors have been looking to track such statistical info for years. But we are increasingly facing a situation where the state has an strong incentive to dictate our personal health habits. it could get ugly.

Ah, I think you make an excellent and balanced point. I agree that government should have little place between doctor and patient. If the OP was making a point that it was a government mandate for doctors to inquire about firearms, I think we'd have a different conversation. But if this is only a matter of a doctor screening for things like lifestyle health issues, home safety, abuse, etc it should only be negotiated with the doctor and patient, and as usual, the patient has every right to defer any questions.

 

[dblack]

For what it's worth, why not discuss the implied point (if I'm not presuming too much) of the OP? With PPACA coming down the pike, government will have a strong incentive to ask such questions. If health care is a right, if your community is responsible for providing you with health care, do they (via the state) have a right to dictate your personal habits to the extent that they effect your health?

 

[SmarterThanHick]

I think that's a good question to pose.

My opinion is that a right does not mean a forced right, it means an option. We have a right to free speech, but we aren't mandated to speak. We have a right to vote and yet tons of people still don't. So a right to healthcare access is only that: the ability to get healthcare if desired by the citizen.

After all, the point of this is not to force everyone to be healthier against their wishes. The point is to avoid bankrupting people for their health conditions. It will just coincidentally increase the health of our society as an added side effect.

 

[Ringel05]

I am going to a new doctor today for my annual physical and to check on a few things. I have relocated so I am going to a new Dr.

They emailed me a 3 page form to fill out and bring in with me. Most of it is standard medical history stuff, but one section is called "Prevention". It asks a series of Yes/No questions like do I smoke, drink alcohol, drink coffee ect. But one question stood out.

"If there is a gun in your home, is it out of children's reach and unloaded?"

Now first of all, in my home the answer would be both Yes and No. One is out of reach but it is loaded.

But the main question I have is what does this have to do with my medical care? I think we can proceed with my physical without the doctor knowing the details on how I store firearms. Plus the form had already asked the names and ages of my children. They are 26, 27, and 29.



Has anyone else had this bizarre question pop up at their doctor's office?

Obviously doctors want to know if you're at risk for particular diseases or injuries. If you store a loaded gun in your home within reach of children, you're at higher risk for being shot. Getting shot is generally a severe medical problem requiring immediate attention, and can often lead to death.

It's a perception thing. I read, somewhere, a few years ago that every year more children under the age of 10 die due to accidents in adult beds then are killed accidentally by firearms (by a large margin). Which begs the question, why don't the questionnaires ask if there are adult beds in the household?

 

[SmarterThanHick]

It's a perception thing. I read, somewhere, a few years ago that every year more children under the age of 10 die due to accidents in adult beds then are killed accidentally by firearms (by a large margin). Which begs the question, why don't the questionnaires ask if there are adult beds in the household?

they do. there's an entire campaign dedicated to it.

well, since we found one large source of child injury, should we stop screening for all others?

 

[Ringel05]

It's a perception thing. I read, somewhere, a few years ago that every year more children under the age of 10 die due to accidents in adult beds then are killed accidentally by firearms (by a large margin). Which begs the question, why don't the questionnaires ask if there are adult beds in the household?

they do. there's an entire campaign dedicated to it.

well, since we found one large source of child injury, should we stop screening for all others?

Like floors? doors? curtain pulls? bathtubs? toilets? clothing? food? chairs? ...............?

 

[SmarterThanHick]

are these things doctors are already screening for? Or just a list of things you typed upon looking around the room you're sitting in?

 

[Ringel05]

are these things doctors are already screening for? Or just a list of things you typed upon looking around the room you're sitting in?

I spent fifteen years in the medical field and twelve years in the law enforcement field, I know what kills people of all ages, every day.

 

[SmarterThanHick]

chairs? you think chairs kill every day?

Not to question your expert reasoning, but why not use factual evidence?
FASTSTATS - Deaths and Mortality
OK, accidents is on the list. But, I can't quite seem to find a source that implicates chairs. Fires, falls, poisonings, drowning, suffocation, car crashes, and guns. But I can't find anything about chairs. So, were you using facts or just naming things in your room?

As for some of the other things you mentioned, certain doctors do ask about things like floors, especially in the elderly to prevent falls.
CDC - Older Adult Falls - Falls Among Older Adults: An Overview - Home and Recreational Safety - Injury Center

 

[Ringel05]

chairs? you think chairs kill every day?

Not to question your expert reasoning, but why not use factual evidence?
FASTSTATS - Deaths and Mortality
OK, accidents is on the list. But, I can't quite seem to find a source that implicates chairs. Fires, falls, poisonings, drowning, suffocation, car crashes, and guns. But I can't find anything about chairs. So, were you using facts or just naming things in your room?

As for some of the other things you mentioned, certain doctors do ask about things like floors, especially in the elderly to prevent falls.
CDC - Older Adult Falls - Falls Among Older Adults: An Overview - Home and Recreational Safety - Injury Center

Try something other than linear thinking......... I'll help out here, children play and climb on household items sometimes resulting in falls. Most of the time it's nothing but in some cases those falls result in serious injury or death. Falling off a chair can therefore be listed as potentially deadly, hence chairs can be hazardous to one's health.
It's not rocket science.
I know, we'll create a Nurf world and everyone will be safe....... till someone suffocates in a pile of Nurf.......

 

[SmarterThanHick]

and you think doctors should ask about chairs in households because of that reasoning? perhaps they should ask about nerf products too?

show me the evidence that shows this is practically happening and warrants a doctor's attention at a routine physical.

 

[Ringel05]

and you think doctors should ask about chairs in households because of that reasoning? perhaps they should ask about nerf products too?

show me the evidence that shows this is practically happening and warrants a doctor's attention at a routine physical.

Never said it did. You're the one who's making the assertion that only specific questions (one in particular which may or may not be part of a political agenda) should be asked for the safety of children. Knowing full well that children die accidentally from a myriad of hazards why aren't doctors asking all those questions as well?

Oh yeah........... politics........

Health Care Professionals to Lawmakers: Stop Gun Violence

 

[Cecilie1200]

If I'm not presenting with a health complaint that is directly related to my owning a gun, like the aforementioned gunpowder allergy, he has no business asking. Owning a gun is not like smoking, or being overweight, or taking medication. It is NOT a "health issue", any more than owning a car is, and my doctor doesn't ask THAT on his questionnaire, either.

It's hilarious, because doctors ask about cars and car seats ALL the time for child checkups. Along with things like fire extinguishers, fire alarms, and outlet protectors. Again, it's called PREVENTION. It's a part of healthcare you continue to ignore exists. I find it hilarious that you know so little about doctors and their responsibilities that you cited a common issue addressed by one of the most common doctors in the country as not being a health issue.

What ******* doctor are YOU going to? The hospital verified that I had an appropriate child seat for Quinlan before they signed him out after I gave birth to him. Apparently, there's a law in our state that requires that, and there's actually a good reason for asking: they'll provide you with one if you don't have one and can't afford it. Our family doctor has NEVER asked me about his car seat or our car. I'm not sure if he knows whether we even HAVE a car. Likewise, he has NEVER asked us if we own a fire extinguisher, smoke detectors, outlet protectors, etc. He doesn't ask if we own a pool or hot tub, despite drowning being the number one cause of death for children under the age of 5 in my state.

Apparently, you really can't live in a world where you're not a helpless child being surrounded and monitored by benevolent authority figures who control your entire life for you. Grow the **** up.

If you are going to a GP who prescribes antidepressants and attempts to diagnose, treat, and monitor mental health issues on his own, he's an idiot and you're an idiot for going to him. Speaking as someone who actually takes antidepressants, I can tell you that I get my diagnoses, prescriptions, and regular monitoring through duly trained and licensed mental health professionals. I would no more let my GP prescribe me psych meds than I would let him operate on me for colon cancer.

Ah this explains a lot.

One would hope that it explains that GPs have no business trying to act like mental health specialists.

 

[SmarterThanHick]

and you think doctors should ask about chairs in households because of that reasoning? perhaps they should ask about nerf products too?

show me the evidence that shows this is practically happening and warrants a doctor's attention at a routine physical.

Never said it did. You're the one who's making the assertion that only specific questions (one in particular which may or may not be part of a political agenda) should be asked for the safety of children. Knowing full well that children die accidentally from a myriad of hazards why aren't doctors asking all those questions as well?

Oh yeah........... politics........

Health Care Professionals to Lawmakers: Stop Gun Violence

well, no. this is your assertion. doctors ask about common prevention health issues. floors for children is not one of them, so it's not asked. guns is one of them, so it is asked. so are fire related issues, and automobile injury issues. Thus the trend is to ask about things that in reality, not in your personal reasoning, have actually been documented as posing health risks. Guns ACTUALLY pose health risks to children.

Gun Accidents Kill 500 Kids a Year | momlogic.com

When floors are responsible for 10 American children dying a year, you'd have a better claim. We're talking hundreds.

Let's put it another way: do you believe children should have access to loaded guns? If no, do you believe it is reasonable to prevent children from having such access?