# Doper Doctors, Vets, and anyone else with a knack for diagnosing... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 13, 2007, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592 "2007-10-13T17:05:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/1 "2007-10-13T17:05:54Z")
Have you ever arrived at the proper diagnosis before House reveals it? If you have, I should think you’d be justifiably proud to tell us how you did it. ---
**Author:** ![wonder9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c57346/32.png) [@wonder9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonder9)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/2 "2007-10-13T22:41:53Z")
IMNAD but my husband is. He’s a Family Medicine doc with 25+ years experience and on the few times he’s been around while House has been on, he ALWAYS calls it before House does. He often calls all of the other alternatives suggested in the show before the finally diagnosis is in but then settles on the right one before House does. The boy is good. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/3 "2007-10-13T22:50:34Z")
Bear in mind that many of the disorders and treatments on \*House \*are considerably far from reality. E.g. performing brain surgery as a cure for unrequited love. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/4 "2007-10-13T22:52:09Z")
I don’t watch _House_ very often, because, IMO, The show has as much to do with medicine as the game _Operation_ has to do with surgery. That said, those times I’ve watched I beat him to the correct diagnosis. ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/5 "2007-10-13T23:36:51Z")
[QUOTE=wonder9] IMNAD but my husband is. He’s a Family Medicine doc with 25+ years experience and on the few times he’s been around while House has been on, he ALWAYS calls it before House does. He often calls all of the other alternatives suggested in the show before the finally diagnosis is in but then settles on the right one before House does. The boy is good. [/QUOTE] You’re damned straight he’s good!!! I’m impressed. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/6 "2007-10-13T23:40:25Z")
Furthermore, I will bet he doesn’t almost kill the patient twice before coming up with the correct answer. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/7 "2007-10-13T23:41:14Z")
[QUOTE=picunurse] I don’t watch _House_ very often, because, IMO, The show has as much to do with medicine as the game _Operation_ has to do with surgery. That said, those times I’ve watched I beat him to the correct diagnosis. [/QUOTE] Good for you, **picunurse**! I never expected an RN to outdo House, but I’m glad you do, because I’ve grown to dislike that son of a bitch. I might stop watching the show because he has no empathy whatever. ---
**Author:** ![BarnOwl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@BarnOwl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BarnOwl)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/8 "2007-10-13T23:42:28Z")
[QUOTE=panache45] Bear in mind that many of the disorders and treatments on \*House \*are considerably far from reality. E.g. performing brain surgery as a cure for unrequited love. [/QUOTE] You always have to be so technical! 😃😃😃 And I’ll bet you couldn’t even begin to paint a picture with a good-sized soap bubble in it. 😛😛😛 ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2007, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/9 "2007-10-14T01:24:12Z")
just remember, it’s _never_ lupus! ---
**Author:** ![Pullet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Pullet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pullet)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2007, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/10 "2007-10-14T02:04:08Z")
I’m usually so wrapped up in being annoyed at his behavior that I can’t pay attention to the patient’s presentation. The moment I finally threw in the remote: He busts in to someone else’s surgery suite mid-surgery with another patient, grabs a scalpel, cuts into his patient, and removes a huge tapeworm. I think he bothered to put on gloves. He didn’t scrub himself or his patient, he didn’t take any of the precautions you need to prevent contamination when cutting into the bowel, and he totally put the other surgery at risk by putting his skanky self in the room. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2007, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/11 "2007-10-14T02:20:26Z")
[QUOTE=Pullet] I’m usually so wrapped up in being annoyed at his behavior that I can’t pay attention to the patient’s presentation. The moment I finally threw in the remote: He busts in to someone else’s surgery suite mid-surgery with another patient, grabs a scalpel, cuts into his patient, and removes a huge tapeworm. I think he bothered to put on gloves. He didn’t scrub himself or his patient, he didn’t take any of the precautions you need to prevent contamination when cutting into the bowel, and he totally put the other surgery at risk by putting his skanky self in the room. [/QUOTE] Exactly my point about the show being as real as a child’s _Operation_ game. ---
**Author:** ![Pullet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Pullet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pullet)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2007, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/12 "2007-10-14T04:09:32Z")
Yeah, sorry. I’ve been waiting so long to complain about it, I just had to drag it into the conversation :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2007, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doper-doctors-vets-and-anyone-else-with-a-knack-for-diagnosing/422592/13 "2007-10-14T21:17:02Z")
Since this is basically about a TV show, I think it’s better suited for Cafe Society than GQ. Colibri General Questions Moderator