In the last several days, I’ve gotten a slew of SPAM messages from people pushing Amoxicillin. Do people think this antibiotic will combat COVID or is there some other reason why it’s suddenly hot? I may never know.
Speaking of antibiotics, my wife has a recurring infection that gets knocked out by an old antibiotic. A specialist figured this out years ago. Then we moved. Her new GP doesn’t want to prescribe it because it’s old and he prefers to prescribe stuff that doesn’t work including Amoxicillin. One would think a GP would believe the results of a specialist rather than rolling his own when it comes to prescriptions. We’re constantly at war with doctors about using medications that work as opposed to using medications that are new.
When asked why they refuse to prescribe stuff that works, the doctors say, “Well, it shouldn’t work.” I have no patience with that answer. A can of real SPAM would probably work better–or a trip to my neighborhood conjure woman.
I’ve always thought I should be able to go to the pharmacy and order what I need without a doctor’s prescription. I usually know what I need and dislike paying for an expensive doctor’s visit to get a piece of paper allowing me to buy that I need. And then, the medication is (of course) overpriced.
There are so many sorrows involved with getting sick, it seems unnecessary for doctors to add roadblocks to our recovery. I don’t mind doctors and I appreciate what they do, but giving them absolute control over my health is a bridge too far (so to speak).
Without a few good doctors in my past, I’d probably be dead. However, the rest of the herd is costing me more money than I can afford. I feel stuck between a rock and a hard place.
How about you? Do you trust the man or woman with a stethoscope?
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Malcolm's Round Table 
How interesting that your (expensive) doctors don’t appeal any more than our (free at point of use) ones.
Even meds you can buy without a scrip here tend to get weaker over time (compare and contrast my old bottle of Chloraseptic with the new one: tastes worse, much less active ingredient). Or be withdrawn altogether as being ‘dangerous’. Yet things like Ibuprofen do not say on them “may cause stroke”.
In the good old bad old days doctors used to be given eg a new fountain pen for looking at a medical reps samples. Now the rewards are significant. That is what has happened to your antibiotic that works I fear – that rep doesn’t spread the wealth enough.
Over here general practitioners are good at a narrow range of quite serious illnesses. But not even *very* good at those. If you have anything else – good luck!
The whole shebang is kind of messed up. Doctors are doctors and they paid a lot to get where they are. They don’t want patients telling them what medicines they need. The antibiotic that works is so old no reps are selling it–probably haven’t ever heard of it. So, the doctors act like we want patent medicine.