I Hate Overly-Sensitive People

[Ben]

This kind of story really gets me going. Mostly, I think, because I have seen the same kind of thing happening at my work over the last year. The boss makes a simple statement like, "you need to revise this report to include 'X' as you were originally instructed to" and the next thing you know, the employee has HR involved because the boss is a big meanie. Then, worse yet, HIS boss tells him to be "more understanding" of the employee's feelings and culture, just like what's happening to this Doctor.

We're turning our society into one big Montessori school.

---------------------------------
http://www.newsnet5.com/irresistible/4882438/detail.html

Woman Files Complaint After Doctor Tells Her She's Obese
New Hampshire Doctor Outraged By Complaint

POSTED: 5:29 pm EDT August 22, 2005
UPDATED: 6:08 pm EDT August 22, 2005

ROCHESTER, N.H. -- The New Hampshire attorney general is investigating a Rochester doctor because a patient complained that he bluntly told her she needed to lose weight.

Dr. Terry Bennett said that he's outraged by what he calls a baseless complaint. A patient was apparently insulted when Bennett told her that she was obese and could only get healthier by losing weight.

"It's an epidemic in the United States, and it's croaking us," Bennett said.

Bennett said that it's a lecture he gives to many of his overweight patients.

"It's your weight, ... and there's dozens of programs," Bennett said. "You don't have to come in here. You can join Jenny Craig. You can go see Weight Watchers."

Bennett said he tells obese patients that their weight is bad for their health and their love lives. But the lecture drove one patient to write a letter to the Board of Medicine, which has passed on the complaint to the Attorney General's Office.

"Did I sleep with somebody? Did I give somebody drugs? Was I careless? No. End of story," Bennett said. "That should have been the end of it."

Now, other overweight patients are coming to Bennett's defense.

"What really makes me angry is he told the truth," patient Mindy Haney said. "How can you punish somebody for that?"

Haney said that Bennett has helped her lose more than 150 pounds, but, at first, she didn't want to listen.

"I have been in this lady's shoes. I've been angry and left his practice. I mean, in-my-car-taking-off angry," Haney said. "But once you think about it, you're angry at yourself, not Dr. Bennett. He's the messenger. He's telling you what you already know."

Haney is so upset at the complaint that she has started a petition demanding that the attorney general be fired. So far, she's gathered 100 signatures.

Bennett said that the Attorney General's Office tried to get him to settle the matter by agreeing to attend a medical education course, which he refused.

"I'm sorry," Bennett said. "If she's watching, I'm devoutly sorry to have offended you. I didn't mean to offend you. I meant to tell you the truth. And that's what I tried to do."

The Board of Medicine would not comment on the case, but Vice President Kevin Costin said, "Physicians have to be professional with patients and remember everyone is an individual. You should not be inflammatory or degrading to anyone."

Bennett said that he thinks his apology should be enough.

[Art Eatman]

People have come to believe that the right to voice an opinion somehow means their opinion is AS GOOD AS any other opinion (which is obvious BS).   This in part creates a certain amount of arrogance about any opinion from anybody, if that opinion doesn't meet with their own agreement.

I was raised on that old joke of the two rules:  Rule 1, the boss is never wrong; and, Rule 2, if the boss is wrong, see Rule 1.  If I didn't like the way the boss ran things, I was free to find another job where the rules suited me better.

Governmental policies over the last thirty or forty years have eaten away at this, to the point now where people feel they can argue against any opinion that doesn't suit them.

It doesn't matter whether it's workplace or doctor's office...

Art

[matis]

And this kind of thing results from our having turned into the therapeutic society.  My feelings are everything and no one has the right to hurt them.  Might somehow damage me.


This kind of thing is the modern and secular replacement for religious values?

It's enought to drive me to my grief counselor.



matis

[Werewolf]

He APOLOGIZED!?

What a pussy. He should have just refunded her money and told her, "and don't come back you fat lazy bitch! You don't want to be healthy and I don't want your money!"

[El Tejon]

About time.  Doctors need to stop hugging and start kicking.

When I was a kid my dentist used to lecture us on flossing, brushing and avoiding crap like soda pop.  He would mock those with bad teeth as "lazy hillbillies."  My brother and I both have perfect teeth which did not require braces.

Set them straight, doc!  Tell them to get off the couch, move around a bunch, and fill their pie holes with salads, not Cheetoes.

[Nathaniel Firethorn]

Getting lectured really, REALLY improves most peoples' motivation.

- NF

[Felonious Monk/Fignozzle]

Lectures-- a "come to Jesus" experience, to use a hillbilly southern colloquialism-- are EXACTLY what some people need.  When you have no one in your life who CARES enough about you to say "dammit, Fran, you used to be a hottie, but now your ass looks like a bean bag chair-- let's go to the gym!", then it USED to be you could hear it from your doctor.  Now, our mealy-mouthed, feelgood society is so enthralled with our children's self-esteem, that we HAVE become one big Montessori school.

Some folks would be alot better off today had they had a reality check when what they got was a "Good Job, Timmy. That's creative thinking."

Set them straight, doc!  Tell them to get off the couch, move around a bunch, and fill their pie holes with salads, not Cheetoes.

+1

[K Frame]

He shouldn't have called her a fat ass.

[Winston Smith]

Hey.. it's glandular.

[roo_ster]

Hey.. it's glandular.

WS is right.  It can be glandular.  I mean, chorizo sausage is made from pig salivary glands & everybody knows that stuff is greasy as heck (but very tasty!).

My doc told me, "You need to lose the 20 lbs you've gained in the last year or you'll have your first heart attack at age 45."  

Weight Watchers works.

[Winston Smith]

My parents dropped a combined totaly of 120 lbs or so in about a year.

Now my dad runs marathons for fun at 53, and my mom is one of the fittest 50 year old women I know.

We have major obesity and heart attack stuff in our genes... all my relatives die from that or some sort of cancer. Somehow my family (through hard work AKA excercise) stays fit. It can be done.

In short: I can imagine a few excuses, like real ACTUAL glandular problems, but it sounds like a lifestyle problem above, because if she had an excuse she would be squealing it... loud.

[jefnvk]

If it was an actual medical problem, the doctor probably would have told her, as well.

I know my endocronologist has had a problem with a few patients, he tells everyone that if they are not going to take care of their diabetes, he is going to drop them as a patient.  Some people take offense to that, I guess.  Don't like being told that they have to care for themselves.

[Warren]

"I Hate Overly-Sensitive People"


That made me cry.

[HForrest]

"Hate" is just such a strong word... I'm offended by that.

[Ben]

GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

[griz]

Gotta agree with this one. We have been required to go to classes (they quit calling them sensitivity classes) to make us aware of all these concerns. One of the things they teach is "perception IS reality", meaning if someone is offended by your words or actions, you are guilty. A friend of mine was asked (politely) by his boss to remove the picture of Rush Limbaugh from his desk because it was offending others. He was surprised that he was being accused of harassment, but he complied to keep the peace.

As a side note, one of the advantages to having your budget cut is the management no longer has enough money to send everybody to these inane classes every year

[charby]

when I meet a overtly sensative person, I just feel like finding out where they live, setting fire to a paper bag of dog poo, ringing the doorbell and watching them from the bushes.

[Ben]

they quit calling them sensitivity classes

Ours were called "Conflict Resolution and Cultural Understanding" classes when my ENTIRE office went through them last Spring. Since then I'm pretty sure they created more conflict than they resolved.

[Art Eatman]

Sometimes holding one's tongue in the face of "adversity" can be difficult.

The Tole Society (decorative painting; originally on metal but nowadays on almost any sort of surface) is made up mostly of women, and most of them average around 5'-4" and around 200 pounds.  My wife owned a manufacturing business which sold into that market, and I accompanied her to trade shows.

One year at Columbus, Ohio, just before the doors opened to the public, the PA system announced that some 3,000 had signed up for the show.  My only thought was, "My God!  Here comes 600 tons of cellulite!"

I mentioned that at smoke break, and commented that I wanted the Liposuction concession.  After the laughter died down I was awarded the prize for original thought of the week.  Life Is Good when you're surrounded by others who are not eaten up with sensitivity...

, Art

[Guest]

I bought my mechanics wife's car once upon a time - had the Weight Watchers Sticker on it.
Now I am tall and lanky. I knew the owner of the local Weight Watchers , customer of mine at the time.

"How much you pay me to keep that WW sticker on the vehicle?" I asked him.
"Why  would I want to do that?" He replied.
His daughter elbowed daddy - "Dad, think about it , folks see Steve get out of that car and think -WOW Weight Watchers is for me!"

I didn't get any money, Sticker was removed promptly

Sometimes holding one's tongue in the face of "adversity" can be difficult.

Yeah I ususally take a smoke break about that time. Walking away is good.  
There was that time I had another job all set and ready to go - Gave my two weeks notice, he didn't like the 2 week notice. So I walked away forever...

Now I know folks have thyroid problems, reactions to meds and such- causing weight gains and all. I know Doctors and Nurses, getting to be one cannot do or say anything for fear of getting sued. And folks wonder why the cost of Medical Care is such. Still the Drs and Nurses I know just tell it like it is. Assessing sometimes means hurting feelings. Find out a thyroid is the culprit or somesuch -patients  bruised feelings give way to gratitude.

Around here CRNA and Anethesitics had a 200% increase hit on Malpractice Insurance. I forget the hit on increase for OB-GYNs were, hence so few Drs delivering babies.

[Sindawe]

Ahhhh..sensitivity classes.  We had to go through those back in 1995ish when I worked in Biotech.  Seems that a few of our less than stellar coworkers objected to being refereed to as:

'85' - cause he was none too bright, and tended to clamp off NH4 feed lines mid-fermentation, killing the culture and ruining the experiment. Came from the character in Alien 3.

'Dragenasses" - cause he could spend an entire 8 hour shift fill ONE 500 liter vessel, and half making the buffer.  A job which normally took the rest of us about 45 minutes to complete WITH pH adjustments.  Came from his last name, which was of Greek origin.

Did'nt do much good though, since the company tended to attract high IQ malcontents who little respect for "authority".  85's work day was particularly hellish for the following weeks.

[Harold Tuttle]

we had to introduce ourselves and describe our background at the start of "Sensitivity Class"

"Hello, i'm an over educated Pennsylvania redneck"

they can't say i didn't warn them,
& they need to be cognicient of my special sensitivities

[SteveS]

I can't beilieve this made it to the AG's office.  As long as the doctor had a medical reason for his advice and did the lecture in a professional manner, he should be safe.  Doctors should be free to tell their patients when their behaviors are contributing to their health problems.  Patients are free to ignore this advice.

[Azrael256]

Getting lectured really, REALLY improves most peoples' motivation.

Yeah, so?  He's a doctor, and he's giving you advice, which you requested, about your health.  If you don't want the lecture, tell him to can it, or find a doctor who doesn't care about your health.

[USP45usp]

I had an old doctor that wanted to make more money so he was switching over to cosmetic surgery.  So on my last visit he decided to tell me the truth and said, "Dang you're ugly, here's my card" .

Wayne

*not really but the doc would have been right in any case, so why sue because you're told the truth?