What do you call a person who just barely passes his black belt test? A person who passed the test because he met the minimum requirements.
Same for Doctors. The person who just barely passes, still met the minimum requirements.
If you believe the minimum requirements are too low, then raise the minimums. But even if you take the minimum "score" from 80 (random number) to 90, you'll still be able to make the joke, "what do you call the person who graduated dead last..." This is why we have minimum standards: to ensure that even those who meet the minimum standards are still qualified.
The joke is funny, but ultimately meaningless.
Peace favor your sword,
Kirk
Buka, I'm not sure how much your post is tongue and cheek.
But I do have some experience with eastern acupuncture and herbal, as well as western medicine. My take on eastern medicine is it depends on both the practitioner and patient. I have seen acupuncturists who could not help a particular patient, but help another very much, both displaying the same symptoms. I have seen patients who were helped for only a few hours or days, others who got up off the treatment table and needed no more treatments, or at least very long times between treatments.
I have diabetes. My wife mentioned that to a Korean traditional doctor who was skilled in herbal treatments. I quickly had to make a choice as to whether to continue the Korean herbal medicine or stick with the western medicine. Taking the two together quickly dropped my blood sugar to unsafe low levels.
I saw a Korean man and wife team, who were under the teaching of a Chinese traditional medicine doctor. They both checked my heartbeat at the wrist, they consulted with the Chinese doctor who also checked it. My wife then told them of my bypass surgery of about 2 years prior. The Koreans had felt anomalies, but weren't sure about what it was.
Strangely, I feel the same about western medicine. How many times do patients consult with other doctors, either because they don't like a particular diagnosis, or because their doctor suggests it.
No, not tongue in cheek at all. Not even a little bit. Over the years I've been told by doctors "you can't, you shouldn't, don't do, blah, blah, blah." Why? Because I suffer from various ailments and have for a long time. And most of the "can't, don't and you shouldn'ts" have been about hard training, competition, diet, medications, work, treatments, whatever.
I'll give you a for instance, a mild one. Five years ago I wore a wrist brace for a year or so, my wrist was just f'ed. Went to some specialists in the best hospitals in Boston. They didn't know what was exactly wrong, so they wanted to do exploratory surgery. I'm thinking, "you don't know what's wrong and you want to cut into me to take a look?" They wanted to cut a ligament in order to let a tendon heal. And I asked, "then you'll re-attach it?" They said, no, you really don't need it. I'm thinking, "I use my hands a lot [Martial Arts] favor carrying a side arm on that side for work, and I don't need it? Hmmm, must be another way.
So I went to Doctor Chen, an acupuncturist for 43 years, who's dad was an acupuncturist too. Went twice a week for three months, and at a very reasonable fee. Haven't worn the brace since. Yesterday afternoon we were doing disarms and wrist locks/grabs. Got my wrist cranked a lot. It's fine. I was actually looking at it this morning, thinking of Doctor Chen. Made me smile.
I suffer from Ulcerative Colitis since I was a kid, I have severe arthritis, I have degenerative disc disease in my neck, I have Rheumatoid Arthritis, I have De Quervain's tenosynovitas, I have a torn MCL that's all scar tissued over, I was hit by a car on my bike as a kid and nothing aligns properly since. I also have blah, bah, blah. Yeah, big fricken whoop.
Some Doctors told me I couldn't train in fighting Arts, at least not on a serious or advanced level, and defintely couldn't fight. Some of those Doctors I later attended the funerals of, and they were younger than I am now. Other Doctors, some in AMA and many others in alternative medicines, told me, "let's try this, that or the other thing." And this, that and the other thing seemed to work. Other than being a broken down, old man, I can still train with anybody, fight with anybody, work full time and enjoy life - sometimes even doing naughty things. All thanks to some Docs I wouldn't listen to and some whom I would.
The question - what do you call a person who graduated last in his Medical class? And the answer, "A Doctor" was not a joke. It was a truth. I believe it is something you should keep in mind when dealing with Doctors.
I wish you all good health. You listen to your choice of Medicine Men, I'll continue to listen to my choice of Medicine men....or not.
