In these uncertain times regarding entitlement, physicians find themselves unsure whether they should continue defending their use of the title “Dr.” There are instances where teachers can hold the title of Dr., as can individuals with PhDs. Additionally, nurses can also obtain PhDs and subsequently be addressed as Dr. Given the evolving climate of reducing privilege, should physicians still assert their entitlement? It is believed that patients desire to know who is caring for them and in what capacity. If patients prioritize degrees over experience, it may make sense to uphold this distinction.
Therefore, any patient seeking anesthesia care can simply inquire of their provider: Are you an anesthesiologist? If the answer is yes, they can further inquire if the provider is a physician and if they are licensed to work independently. Finally, patients can inquire about the length of time the provider has been licensed to work independently. Similarly, patients seeking primary health care can ask: Are you a physician? If yes, are you licensed to work independently? And finally, how long have you been licensed to work independently? These questions should suffice.
These types of inquiries may not be necessary for many medical and surgical specialties where non-physicians do not practice independently. However, any patient seeking medical services or undergoing surgical procedures can still inquire whether their caregiver is a physician licensed to work independently. By asking these questions, there is no need to inquire or assert whether one is a Dr. or not. In fact, anyone can be addressed as Dr. if they possess scholarly qualifications, as the term originates from the Latin verb “docere.”
Assistant physicians and physician assistants may encounter confusion if patients mistakenly overlook the word “assistant,” but it’s important to note that they cannot claim to be licensed to work independently—at least not currently. Certified registered nurse anesthetists and advanced practice registered nurses, on the other hand, may not face confusion even if they are authorized to work independently, as they cannot claim to be physicians. Therefore, any concerns physicians may have about being mistaken for non-physicians can be alleviated by using the term “independent physician” (IP). However, this does not mean that the entitlement as Dr. should be replaced with the entitlement as IP.
The term Dr. serves as a broad umbrella under which both medical and non-medical scholars find refuge. Therefore, once physicians shed their entitlement as Dr., they can simply introduce themselves to patients as “I am JJ Doe. I will be your anesthesiologist (or cardiologist, podiatrist, dentist, cardiac surgeon, etc.).” Thereafter, informed patients can ask further questions to assess the provider’s experience and skills in relation to their educational background, allowing them to evaluate the cumulative weight of the provider’s medicolegal liability.
Deepak Gupta is an anesthesiologist.
