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Thanks for sharing. This lines up so well with my experience as a translator in the ER — doctors are constantly catastrophizing and make it seem like everyone is going to die all the time and seemingly massively overtreat/overtest most patients. It really turned me off and decided not to go to medical school. Maybe it’s their version of upselling.

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I think it's more likely that it's their version of "if I do this and something goes wrong, I'm less likely to lose the lawsuit."

I think it is also about seeing the most difficult cases and having them stick in your memory as a med student. I have friends who practice medicine and they show the same behavior even when there is no monetary incentive at any stage for them. They do this even for their own parents and kids.

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