The Renegade Doc Comments

I found this article a few days ago and it was amazing how well Michael Lewis articulated my own thought processes about the system and practice of medicine, even though he was talking about his experience with the world of finance.

To this day, the willingness of a Wall Street investment bank to pay me hundreds of thousands of dollars to dispense investment advice to grownups remains a mystery to me. I was 24 years old, with no experience of, or particular interest in, guessing which stocks and bonds would rise and which would fall. The essential function of Wall Street is to allocate capital—to decide who should get it and who should not. Believe me when I tell you that I hadn’t the first clue.

I’d never taken an accounting course, never run a business, never even had savings of my own to manage. I stumbled into a job at Salomon Brothers in 1985 and stumbled out much richer three years later, and even though I wrote a book about the experience, the whole thing still strikes me as preposterous—which is one of the reasons the money was so easy to walk away from. I figured the situation was unsustainable. Sooner rather than later, someone was going to identify me, along with a lot of people more or less like me, as a fraud. Sooner rather than later, there would come a Great Reckoning when Wall Street would wake up and hundreds if not thousands of young people like me, who had no business making huge bets with other people’s money, would be expelled from finance.

When I sat down to write my account of the experience in 1989—Liar’s Poker, it was called—it was in the spirit of a young man who thought he was getting out while the getting was good. I was merely scribbling down a message on my way out and stuffing it into a bottle for those who would pass through these parts in the far distant future.

I  would paraphrase it this way:

To this day, the willingness of [people] to pay me [a few] thousands of dollars to dispense [medical] advice [and dangerous drugs] to grownups remains a mystery to me. I was [33] years old, with no experience of, [though a strong] interest in, guessing [and figuring out what "attacks" people to make them ill]. The essential function of [Medicine] is to [gather money for the practitioners and to keep people in the dark about how their bodies really work so the perceived value of the medical "expert" remains high]. Believe me when I tell you that I [(and most doctors)] hadn’t the first clue.

[Although I had been trained in medical school, had completed a three year Family Practice Residency, and was Board Certified in Family Practice, I barely knew anything about myself and even less about people and what they needed to live well and to be healthy.] I stumbled into [working with two other older physicians in 1983] and stumbled out [not at all] richer [but a lot wiser] [six] years later, and even though I [did not write] a book about the experience, the whole thing still strikes me as preposterous—which is one of the reasons the [reputation, respect and responsibility] was so easy to walk away from. I figured the situation was unsustainable. Sooner rather than later, someone was going to identify me, along with a lot of people more or less like me, as a fraud. Sooner rather than later, there would come a Great Reckoning when [people] would wake up and hundreds if not thousands of [doctors] like me, who had no business making huge bets with other people’s [health], would be expelled from [Medicine].

When I [sit] down [now] to [comment in blogs] of the experience it [is] in the spirit of a [now older] man who thought he was getting out while the getting was good. I merely scribble down a message [in] my [own] way and stuff it into a bottle for those who would pass through these parts in the [hopefully not so] far distant future.

Now this is not to say that Medicine, or Finance, is totally bad (though there may be days when I wonder!).   There has to be some value or we would be living back in the Dark Ages.   (Some might say we do.)  However, how far advanced, more enlightened, more free, more fulfilling of our potential as people and as a culture, more full of LIFE in all ways might we be if we were not so concerned with personal greed and oligarchal control and power.  We are like a Michael Phelps competing for gold while wearing an overcoat.

Like Jesus to those standing around Lazarus, let us say to these systems that we so quickly serve, “Loose us and let us go!”

Blessings,

Dr Jon