Why You’ll Never Be Offered Informed Consent from an Employed MD
- Christian Elliot
- 2 hours ago
- 5 min read
Hello friends,
I’ve been busy studying for multiple podcast episodes (stay tuned!) and one of the doctors I’m learning from has been so articulate in describing how real “informed consent” has become an impossibility in the medical system.
Here are two stats to kick this post off.
When my upcoming guest started his residency, 70% of doctors were in private practice (i.e. they ran their own businesses). Today that number is 22.4%.
According to his experience, the average employed MD only gets nine minutes of interaction with his/her patients.
What is the significance of that?
I’ll come back to that in a second, but first…
A CLIENT STORY
Today I was dialoging with a client who had the thought of asking her eye doctor if there are any potential risks of the medication used to dilate the eyes.
The doctor responded that “The only side effect is ‘being annoyed’ that the eyes are still dilated after the exam is over.”
Like me, my client understands that all medications have potential side effects. So, she wanted a better answer and asked if I knew anything about the medication’s potential side effects.
(BTW: If you find yourself in such a scenario, just search for “package insert for ______” and see what you find. Reading a package insert is like seeing a drug ad on TV, but without all the dreamy images to distract you from the side effects they are required to list.)
It took me five seconds to find the medication online, which turned up, among other potential side effects: “Another rare but severe side effect is psychosis, particularly in children.”
Yikes.
While the risks of the medication may be low compared to others, and annoyance may be the biggest side effect the majority of people express, the doctor’s response is NOT informed consent, not even close, no matter how “rare” psychotic episodes or other side effects may be.
Honest informed consent would have started with something like this…
“Good question! Let’s pull up the package insert and see what it says about what risks they found before the drug was approved.”
Instead, what my client got was an unspoken, “Meh…let’s not talk about that. Otherwise, I might have to field questions I don’t want to answer."
I’ll give you a few such questions you could ask after I tell you…
WHAT’S HAPPENING BEHIND TODAY’S MEDICAL CURTAIN?
An employed MD today has a fiduciary responsibility to 1) the hospital, and 2) the insurance companies. Those are the two bosses, and your needs are, at best, your doctor’s third priority.
The vast majority of doctors are at risk of being fired, and/or having their license taken away, if they do not fall in line under the established protections of the “standard of care.” Hello covid and centralized healthcare!
Those in charge of establishing the “standard” of (impersonalized, crappy) care are the investors who buy hospitals and insert MBAs (non-health professionals) into the business in order to turn hospitals into highly-lucrative cash cows.
That business model is designed to be scalable, volume-based “care” that relies on carefully-worded waivers, churning through visits as fast as possible via standardized talking points, and appeals to authority to help the institution avoid informed consent.
When you ask an employed MD a question, they are trained to regurgitate talking points, hand you a brochure, and duck out of the room so you don’t ask any more questions.
Once you’re out of the office, good luck trying to call back and ask a follow-up question.
Feeling unseen in the doctor’s office is not your imagination, it’s part of their business model. They just hope you won’t notice how dehumanizing the experience is, or that you’ll put up with it because they figured out how to get your insurance to pay for it.
Eight out of ten MDs, for fear of losing their job, are DIS-incentivized to have honest conversations and, even if they wanted to, do not have the time to dialogue with you about the risks and benefits of the potions, tests, and procedures they prescribe.
SEVEN, INFORMED-CONSENT RELATED QUESTIONS YOU COULD ASK
After you get the initial "from-the-brochure" practiced-talking-point answer to a question about risk, if you’re sturdy enough for a deflection, a possible snide comment, dismissive tone, or gaslighting, you could try asking…
What is the risk of not doing that intervention?
How would your suggested intervention impact me long-term?
When would you have time to review the package insert with me?
Who funded that study that established the safety you mentioned?
The risks you mentioned are compared to what? Not doing anything?
Do you have any knowledge of the risks and benefits of natural alternatives?
And the whopper: “How do you know my body isn’t at risk of experiencing those known side effects”?
Do you see why medical doctors (especially employed ones) don’t want to have an informed-consent conversation?
For most employed doctors, informed, inquisitive patients are the bane of their existence.
It’s much easier for doctors to not rock the boat, collect their paycheck, and if necessary, hide behind the liability waivers you didn’t have time to read, and enjoy the malpractice protections that come with following the “standard.”
(Side note: This is why no one has gone to jail for covid-related crimes.)
Informed consent is your right, but sadly, you will have to fight for it.
If you don’t want to ask any of the questions I suggested above, I encourage you to ponder why you engage the system at all.
There are doctors and coaches of all stripes who see this inhumane racket for what it is, and have made the hard choice to choose a different model.
If you’re inclined to stick with an MD, at least look for one in private practice who does NOT take insurance. Such people don’t want to be in the pill-dispensing business, or the lucrative, unnecessary-surgery business.
Prestige isn’t what motivates everyone in healthcare. Working in a way that allows us to make a difference is what motivates many of us.
Earning a living doing something I feel GREAT about is what motivates me.
Yes, we, like so many, have to charge more than a co-pay to get outside the high-volume game, but that is where fulfilling work is found, and the confidence and peace of mind that customers like you can get in return is priceless.
Your health (and good guidance) isn’t something to skimp on. It’s something to invest in.
If you want to experience what healthcare could have been all along, if you want to get outside the system and learn nature’s remedies for healing, check us out and book a call.
Whatever route you choose to go, at least now you are better informed to see what healthcare has become, and you can be more discerning about what you consent to.
And who knows…we might be just the answer you’re looking for.
Until next time,
Christian
PS. Want more insights? See my recent post 13 Health Fads You Can Safely Skip in 2026.
PPS. Curious how we put all the pieces together in a personalized program? I gave away our entire "secret sauce" of how we create breakthroughs when doctors can't.
