Yeah, but back then the SDMB only accepted people with MDs.
Right, but we’re probably asking the wrong questions anyway (or wrongly asking the right ones). If we wanted to know what the OP is talking about, we’d probably need to ask something like “oblate haddock purchases trouser press salaciously?” We certainly couldn’t just ask him what he’s on about; that’d be weird.
Tree doctors, rug doctors and furniture doctors need recognition and respect too. And don’t underestimate the importance of a lawn doctor to the health and well-being of your turf.
Just imagine the team that could rush to your aid if you’re stricken on a flight.
Back in school when we first learned how to write “business letters” we were told that while men shouldn’t use “Mr” in reference to themself it was acceptable for a woman to use “Ms/Miss/Mrs” so as to indicate her preference.
At least in Britain, a surgeon is a fully qualified medical Doctor who took further studies to drop the Dr. and become Mr., so they are just as ready to stand to in case of medical emergency.
It’s worth seven times as much to me to be able to travel as Dame Freddy the Pig.
Ok, so titles aside, wouldn’t the flight crew and the prospective patient be best served by someone with training and experience whether they are an MD or not?
Personally I have had extensive first aid training and been CPR certified for about 8 years now. Every other year I get re-certified and on the off years I take refresher courses. I do this because I am responsible for the 12 - 18 people who work in my warehouse and I am their first responder. In this position I have stabilized an ankle, dealt with several unconscious people with conditions ranging from diabetes to (unfortunately) assault, bandaged countless minor wounds and handled the basic emergency care of several of my employees. My wife is a CNA and we have both responded to random trauma in everyday experiences, one that stands out was a motorcycle accident where we assisted in stabilizing the rider until the ambulance arrived and assisted the medical personnel in preparing the victim for transport, so I am no stranger to trauma.
However I am definitely not a doctor, EMT or other professional emergency care provider. If I were on an airplane and a passenger were having a heart attack I would be able to assist in stabilizing the passenger, including CPR if needed, but would always defer to a more qualified person.
So formal titles aside, who would you rather have sitting next to you on a long flight after choking down that In-n-Out 4x4 with triple bacon: me, Dr. Joyce Brothers or Dr. Phil?
Y’all keep your titles and thesis-es and such and I’ll keep running my warehouse and preaching safety and prevention every day. If you ever drop like a rock I’ll be happy to help you out and you can just call me N8.
Maybe he’s an expert on the history of medicine. :rolleyes:
You’d think so, but anyone unfortunate enough to have travelled with British Airways will know full well that whatever your nominal title, you will be treated as if it were “Prisoner”.
Guys? Guys! HEY! GUYS!
The horse is dead. He stopped twitching around page 2. Now you’re making pemmican.
But at least you’re being entertaining while you’re at it.
Fine.
To paraphrase nd_n8
So formal titles aside, who would you rather have sitting next to you on a long flight after choking down that pemmican: me, Dr. Joyce Brothers or Dr. Phil?
Truly, almost never. My bank doesn’t require it, either online or on paper. I’ve never seen a credit card, which presumably has the same name associated with the bank account that said “Dr.” or “Ms.” or “Prof” or anything else besides the person’s name. After the name is a different story, and I’ve often seen people put their degrees there, e.g. MD in the case of a physician, Ph.D in the case of a history professor and so on. The power company? You’re kidding. My bills come to me as simply Firstname Pithecanthropus. I was honestly never asked by them to tell them if I wanted to be called Dr or Mr.
I don’t travel too often, but IIRC it’s somewhat more common there to be asked what title I prefer to use, and to have printed on the tickets.
At least Dr. Joyce Brothers uses her full name. I don’t know about Dr. “Phil”.
I’ve seen ‘Dr.’ on credit cards, but I suspect its a financial thing. That is, I suspect that a certain MD makes enough money that its financially worthwhile to incorporate as 'Dr. Certain MD, Incorporated". and gets a ‘company’ credit card with ‘Dr. Certain’ on it for use for business expenses, business lunches etc.
I remember asking about it, and apparently Dr. Certain can’t easily incorporate as Farting Monkey Corp. No cite, just what I was told by the guy with the ‘I am a corporation’ paperwork in his office.
All of my British cards (atm, credit, etc.) have a title. None of my American cards do.
This is the dumbest conversation in the world. When I book an airline ticket, there’s a dropdown box. Of the usual options (Mr., Miss, Ms., Mrs., and Dr.), two apply to me: Mr. and Dr. I have a Ph.D. Why shouldn’t I pick the one that is more specific? Because some hit-and-run OP thinks (apparently mistakenly) that I might be approached by a flight attendant to perform surgery based on one unverified, insignificant decision that takes all of a half-second to make?
Or, to put it another way: what Dead Badger said.
I wonder if the OP has ever even read the thread.
I do the exact opposite. Both Mr. and Dr. apply (MD and PhD). I have always chosen Mr., 'cause I don’t like to use titles in a non-professional situation, and I’m secretly hoping that they’ll approach somebody else based on the passenger manifest to deal with the medical problem before they announce it over the overhead.
DDS?
DVM?
What if one were FACS certified?
Oh the humanity.
Personally I don’t see the point of calling any doctor “Dr. So and So” outside of their formal setting. I wouldn’t call a judge “your honor” if he showed up to have a pint with me at a pub. I worked at a hospital and almost always called the docs by their first names.
When I signed up for American Airlines frequent flier I chose “Commander” as my title just for shits and giggles. I forget that when I book via their web site that gets on my reservation somehow.
If the flight crew wants a “go to” list for in-flight medical care, they need to have a “Are You Willing/Qualified to Render Care” box, with prompts for detailed credentials.
With all due respect the highly qualified specialized MD/DOs out there, many are not trained in emergent/urgent medical care, and are likely neither current nor proficient in acute care. Provide preferred seating for a limited number of EMT/RN/CNP/MD/Whatever people willing to help if needed. Frankly, in many of basic acute crises that might be amenable in-flight, what you want is a properly trained ER physician, EMT, RN or PA, and not an otherwise credentialed MD/DO.
As for the social use of professional titles, fuck that, and fuck the people who insist on it. Putting the Social MD on a high tier above all other titles is irrelevant and stupid.
As for the title of doctor, theologians, teachers, scientists and academics held it first, and the original meaning of the word relates to teaching.
As for US-trained physicians, the MD/DO is not an academic doctorate. The entry level degree for UK-trained physicians is MBBS and the like - bachelor degrees in medicine and surgery. And perfectly nice physicians train for surgery in order to not be called doctor. And many of the european universities put the entry-level physician degree at the professional masters level.
Society is partly to blame for that. People frequently place the “Dr.” honorific before a physician’s name on wedding invitations, theatre programs, and the like. I’m sure that many physicians have learned to expect this as a result.
IMO, this is one big reason why laypeople don’t bat an eye when a physician is introduced as “Doctor,” but are more likely to complain if a PhD-holder is accorded that honorific.