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Comment by Fnoord | Hacker News Reader

> What doctor would you go to, a white man, a black man, or a woman, if you knew that there's affirmative action for blacks/women, and you wanted (and could afford) the best doctor?

What is it with this obsession that every requires the best doctor? I don't want the best doctor, I want a good enough doctor who is close to my house location or I will stick to my current doctor because I had good experience with them. Once I stumble upon problems with that doctor I might reevaluate. Sometimes good is good enough, you don't always need the best of the best. My dentist is a woman, and not white. She's great. My doctor is a white male, he is also great. Skin or gender mean nothing to me in this context.

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(Not agreeing with OP's strategy whatsoever) -- because the wrong doctor can cost you time, health and your _life_. Particularly with surgeon's, the best surgeon's (and practice's) may have substantially lower complication rates. Its not a small difference.

> What is it with this obsession that every requires the best doctor?

Being only willing to settle for the absolute best doctor in the world is ridiculous, but it is perfectly rational to want to choose the best one out of a small group of candidates. I can't imagine approaching it any other way when my personal health is on the line.

And most people will optimize for all those factors as well. We aren't saying that you have to pick the doctor with the absolute highest scores, only that there is another factor to rationally consider which shouldn't be there.

But how will you find a good enough doctor to begin with?

Well generally, if they're employed they're not terrible else word of mouth (if not lawsuits) would've made them unemployed [1] (Don't have English source). I live in a small country where that works. Also, by talking to them during your intake. When I recently needed oral surgery, the specialist recommend I'd use oxazepam and reassured me it'd work (I have fear for needles). The 2 procedures went great (one was common, one was a tad more complex). You can have a second opinion as well, if you're in doubt. If I'd have cancer I'd go to Antoni van Leeuwenhoek hospital [2]. It has a good name.

[1] https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medisch_tuchtcollege

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoni_van_Leeuwenhoekziekenhu...

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