Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Disclaimer! Caution: There’s too much information

Michael Kirsch, MD
Physician
January 2, 2017
Share
Tweet
Share

Even though I am over 40 — by a long shot — I am familiar with the abbreviation TMI. Today, we are inundated with so much noise, chatter and static. I feel that we are bombarded with information that we must sift through and ultimately delete. The news cycle is 24 hours and hits us from so many electronic sources simultaneously. I am deluged each day with so many unwanted and unsolicited emails from organizations that I have never heard of that one of my favorite words on their emails can be found when I scroll to the end. UNSUBSCRIBE!

Another genre of information assault is the panoply of warnings and disclaimers that we confront. Of course, we are all numb since we have been so supersaturated with them. I’ll prove it to you. The next time you are about to take off on an airplane, the flight attendant will review safety information if a catastrophe occurs. While one might think that folks would be attentive to information that might be useful if the plane loses altitude or is headed for a “water landing,” no one is paying any attention at all. Most of us are browsing through the Skymall catalog which showcases amazing gadgets, such as a device that can dispense food to your cat while you’re away. For the cat’s sake, I hope there won’t be a power failure. Moreover, the flight attendants who are issuing the briefings seem more bored than the passengers.

How often do we hear the nonsensical phrase that this product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease? In other words, we admit our product does nothing, but please buy it for your ailing bones and prostate glands.

How often do we hit the “I Agree” icon, which follows pages of lawyerly small print, just to get to the next page?

We have been over-warned, over-disclosed and over-disclaimed.

While rounding at the hospital, I saw the following sign posted on a coffee machine.

Newsflash! Hot Coffee is Hot!

Look what fear of litigation has done for us. Before litigate-o-mania, we might not have realized that hot coffee is actually hot and might injure us if we spilled its steaming contents onto us. Now, we are all much safer knowing that hot beverages — which we want to be hot — are hot.

Of course, these protections extend beyond steaming drinks. If I were in charge, I’d issue rules and regs that would mandate the following warnings.

Caution: these steak knives are sharp and not intended to remove feet callouses.

This chainsaw is for industrial use by trained lumberjacks. It is not intended as a toy for children under the age of seven.

This lighter fluid is dangerous and should not be stored in a child’s crib.

The medical profession is a part of this game also. Every day, I have informed consent discussions with patients regarding procedures that I have advised them to undergo. These are informal conversations when I try to give patients sufficient information so that they can make informed decisions. This is reasonable and a fundamental part of the doctor-patient relationship.

The hospital, however, is not satisfied with my efforts and requires that patients sign long consent forms, which most patients sign blindly without reading them. For any readers here who have had the pleasure of having enjoyed hospital life, I’m sure that you can attest how many different forms you have signed from the moment you arrived at the hospital door to your discharge. Most patients and physicians regard these signings to be mere formalities, which are intended to protect hospitals and not patients. If patients actually took the time to read through all of these legal CYA (cover your a**) forms, it might grind the hospital to halt. There’s not enough time for patients to read and understand all this drivel.

ADVERTISEMENT

Caution readers: This blog is not intended to inform, enlighten, provoke, challenge or amuse readers. Readers accept all responsibility for any resultant angst or mental torment and hold blogger harmless for any and all perceived damages until the end of time.

Click I AGREE.

Michael Kirsch is a gastroenterologist who blogs at MD Whistleblower.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

This is what the election taught me about medicine

January 1, 2017 Kevin 1
…
Next

Going to a walk-in clinic? 6 essential things you must know before you visit

January 2, 2017 Kevin 17
…

Tagged as: Hospital-Based Medicine

Post navigation

< Previous Post
This is what the election taught me about medicine
Next Post >
Going to a walk-in clinic? 6 essential things you must know before you visit

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Michael Kirsch, MD

  • Are Ozempic patients on a slow-moving runaway train?

    Michael Kirsch, MD
  • AI-driven diagnostics and beyond

    Michael Kirsch, MD
  • The surprising truth behind virtual visits

    Michael Kirsch, MD

Related Posts

  • There’s no such thing as work-life balance

    Katie Fortenberry, PhD
  • A physician’s addiction to social media

    Amanda Xi, MD
  • More physician responsibility for patient care

    Michael R. McGuire
  • How a physician keynote can highlight your conference

    Kevin Pho, MD
  • Chasing numbers contributes to physician burnout

    DrizzleMD
  • The black physician’s burden

    Naomi Tweyo Nkinsi

More in Physician

  • When cancer costs too much: Why financial toxicity deserves a place in clinical conversations

    Yousuf Zafar, MD
  • The hidden rewards of a primary care career

    Jerina Gani, MD, MPH
  • Why doctors regret specialty choices in their 30s

    Jeremiah J. Whittington, MD
  • 10 hard truths about practicing medicine they don’t teach in school

    Steven Goldsmith, MD
  • How I learned to love my unique name as a doctor

    Zoran Naumovski, MD
  • What Beauty and the Beast taught me about risk

    Jayson Greenberg, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The human case for preserving the nipple after mastectomy

      Thomas Amburn, MD | Conditions
    • Nuclear verdicts and rising costs: How inflation is reshaping medical malpractice claims

      Robert E. White, Jr. & The Doctors Company | Policy
    • How new loan caps could destroy diversity in medical education

      Caleb Andrus-Gazyeva | Policy
    • IMGs are the future of U.S. primary care

      Adam Brandon Bondoc, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors struggle with family caregiving and how to find grace [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Locum tenens: Reclaiming purpose, autonomy, and financial freedom in medicine

      Trevor Cabrera, MD | Physician
  • Past 6 Months

    • Health equity in Inland Southern California requires urgent action

      Vishruth Nagam | Policy
    • How restrictive opioid policies worsen the crisis

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
    • Why primary care needs better dermatology training

      Alex Siauw | Conditions
    • Why pain doctors face unfair scrutiny and harsh penalties in California

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
    • How a doctor defied a hurricane to save a life

      Dharam Persaud-Sharma, MD, PhD | Physician
    • What street medicine taught me about healing

      Alina Kang | Education
  • Recent Posts

    • Affordable postpartum hemorrhage solutions every OB/GYN can use worldwide [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • When cancer costs too much: Why financial toxicity deserves a place in clinical conversations

      Yousuf Zafar, MD | Physician
    • Psychiatrist tests ketogenic diet for mental health benefits

      Zane Kaleem, MD | Conditions
    • The hidden rewards of a primary care career

      Jerina Gani, MD, MPH | Physician
    • Why physicians should not be their own financial planner

      Michelle Neiswender, CFP | Finance
    • Why doctors regret specialty choices in their 30s

      Jeremiah J. Whittington, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 2 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The human case for preserving the nipple after mastectomy

      Thomas Amburn, MD | Conditions
    • Nuclear verdicts and rising costs: How inflation is reshaping medical malpractice claims

      Robert E. White, Jr. & The Doctors Company | Policy
    • How new loan caps could destroy diversity in medical education

      Caleb Andrus-Gazyeva | Policy
    • IMGs are the future of U.S. primary care

      Adam Brandon Bondoc, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors struggle with family caregiving and how to find grace [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Locum tenens: Reclaiming purpose, autonomy, and financial freedom in medicine

      Trevor Cabrera, MD | Physician
  • Past 6 Months

    • Health equity in Inland Southern California requires urgent action

      Vishruth Nagam | Policy
    • How restrictive opioid policies worsen the crisis

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
    • Why primary care needs better dermatology training

      Alex Siauw | Conditions
    • Why pain doctors face unfair scrutiny and harsh penalties in California

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
    • How a doctor defied a hurricane to save a life

      Dharam Persaud-Sharma, MD, PhD | Physician
    • What street medicine taught me about healing

      Alina Kang | Education
  • Recent Posts

    • Affordable postpartum hemorrhage solutions every OB/GYN can use worldwide [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • When cancer costs too much: Why financial toxicity deserves a place in clinical conversations

      Yousuf Zafar, MD | Physician
    • Psychiatrist tests ketogenic diet for mental health benefits

      Zane Kaleem, MD | Conditions
    • The hidden rewards of a primary care career

      Jerina Gani, MD, MPH | Physician
    • Why physicians should not be their own financial planner

      Michelle Neiswender, CFP | Finance
    • Why doctors regret specialty choices in their 30s

      Jeremiah J. Whittington, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Disclaimer! Caution: There’s too much information
2 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...