If you have a second, check out this really great video from an interesting website called Give Me a Second. The purpose of this site is to educate women about the importance of getting a second opinion, when it comes to seeking treatment for the below medical conditions:
· Cancer
· Unresolved heart condition
· Brain tumor
· Unresolved menstrual issue
· Autoimmune condition
· Irritable Bowel Syndrome
· Varicose veins
The video and website are targeted to women, but the concept of getting a second opinion is a good one for men as well. According to research conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health, approximately 30% of surgeries are unnecessary. Some other sources claim the number to be as high as 60%. The value of getting a second opinion is that different doctors have different areas of expertise, even within the same specialty, depending on their experience. Some doctors are more up to date with the science and technology of less invasive surgeries like laparoscopy. This type of surgery could help cut down on costs, complications, and recovery time. The chance of misdiagnosis can also be reduced by getting a second opinion. And there are situations when you might even consider getting a third opinion.
Yet there are still graver consequences for unnecessary interventions. According to Barbara Starfield, Professor of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, a conservative estimate of the percentage of deaths caused by adverse effects of medical intervention and treatment in the US is 10 percent. This means that 275,000 of the total of 2.5 million deaths that are annually attributed to specific diseases are actually the result of harm from interventions.
If you’d like to read more, there was an interesting article written on the same topic in the New York Times. It was published over 20 years ago, but is just as relevant today as it was back then. Click here to read.
