Technology and the Doctor-Patient Relationship

Medicine is an ancient profession that advances as each generation of practitioners passes it down. It remains a distinguished, flawed and rewarding vocation—but it may be coming to an end as we know it. Computer algorithms promise patients better access, safer therapies and more predictable outcomes. Technology reduces costs, helps design more effective and personalized treatments and diminishes fraud and waste. Balanced against these developments is the risk that medical professionals will forget that their primary responsibility is to their patients, not to a template of care. Written for anyone who has considered a career in health care—and for any patient who has had an office visit where a provider spent more time with data-entry than with them—this book weighs the benefits of emerging technologies against the limitations of traditional systems to envision a future where both doctors and patients are better-informed consumers of health care tools.

D.C. Lozar, M.D., worked for the National Institute for Health (N.I.H.) in neurobiology research, at Columbus Hospital in downtown Chicago as a surgical resident, and at Cook County in trauma surgery before pursuing family practice and spending the last twenty years honing his skills as a physician in primary care. For more information, visit his website at www.dclozar.com. He lives in Carlsbad, California.

Elaine A. Moore has worked in hospital laboratories for more than 30 years, primarily in immunohematology and toxicology. She is a freelance medical writer and laboratory consultant. For more information, visit her website at www.elaine-moore.com. She lives in Sedalia, Colorado.

D.C. Lozar, M.D.

Series Editor Elaine A. Moore

Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 260
Bibliographic Info: notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2019
pISBN: 978-1-4766-7520-6
eISBN: 978-1-4766-3744-0
Imprint: McFarland
Series: McFarland Health Topics

Author’s Note xii
Preface 1
Introduction 3

One. Buck Rogers Medicine (Utopia) 7
Two. George Orwell Medicine (Dystopia) 20
Three. Frontier Medicine (Old School) 31
Four. Beam Me Up, Scotty (Telemedicine) 49
Five. The Healing Touch (Origin Story) 61
Six. Go Gently into That Good Night (Death) 72
Seven. Lawyers, Doctors and Lobbyists, Oh My (Mala Praxis) 82
Eight. Medicine Is Dirty (Don’t Bring It Home) 96
Nine. It’s The Money, Stupid (Terminal Economics) 113
Ten. We’re Only Human (That’s the Point) 127
Eleven. The Librarians (Custodians of Health) 139
Twelve. The Altered Mind of a Physician (Evolution?) 157
Thirteen. We Are Not Alone (It’s Called a Planet) 173
Fourteen. The Brave New World (Is Here) 181
Fifteen. Doctor Tomorrow (What’s Next?) 193

Addendum 205
Chapter Notes 209
Bibliography 223
Index 241

“The author, a physician, draws on his long and varied experiences… His selection of cases and detailed descriptions of the environments in which they unfold clearly convey his values and a humanistic approach to patient care. …provides an excellent critique of thoughtless adoption of technology in clinical medicine, and offers suggestions on how to incorporate humanism into the technology development and implementation process…recommended”—Choice

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