@chippydoo it is unfair to assume your doctor requires you to visit to get your test results for his personal financial gain. Most of the care that physicians provide is done behind the scenes and not during face to face contact, all of which is time consuming, not to
mention the cognitive skills involved in monitoring patients and working to achieve the best possible outcome. Do you know of any professional who provides services free of charge or do you prefer a physician who is burnt out and under compensated to be providing your care? Most doctors spend an hour behind the scenes for every hour they spend in direct patient care. Many work 12-14 hour days when that extra time is factored in. Furthermore, the face to face encounter provides continuity of care and an opportunity for the provider to make adjustments to a treatment regiment based on observations that can only be encountered in an appointment setting.

If a person is uncomfortable with his/her doctor, then by all means find another provider. But don’t ascribe greed or a lack of compassion to a physician out of that frustration.

Even those countries with national healthcare coverage are not immune to patient frustration, and many who can afford it, have private insurance to allow them to seek care outside of the NHS, so that is not always a panacea.

And lastly, I am one of the first and loudest to encourage patients to seek care at an academic center, but because I believe that is where the best and most up to date treatment protocols are employed and not because the physicians are compensated any differently than those in private practice.