Medical assistants don't have a lot of training - some who work in offices have none. Pay is low and the people who fill those jobs and other non-nurses tend to be those on the low end of the educational attainment scale too. You get what you pay for.

We know someone whose family circumstances didn't allow her any education beyond high school. As in the recent "well read" thread, a lack of formal education doesn't need to lead to a life sentence of ignorance. But, a lack of curiosity concerning the world around and a lack of self-education through reading certainly can. This woman is the dumbest person I know, there's no end to the words she gets wrong like this or concepts she misunderstands.

People who read and write reasonably well don't tend to make these mistakes because they can spell most words they hear and so can picture them when using them. Someone who doesn't read, and spells poorly, can only approximate what new words are based on trying to remember how they sound. I have no sympathy for this one.

That strikes me as funny, mama goose. Maybe her brain doesn't hear what her mouth has said.

Maybe it's cross between colonoscopy and colostomy.

I mix up words sometimes without realizing it. Sometimes I say "stragedy" instead of "strategy" even though I know very well what "strategy" means. :)

Chi, perhaps you got that from Boris Badenov on the Bullwinkle Show. In one episode, Boris tells Natasha:

Boris: Moose will never reach Vashington, Natasha! I'm going to use "stragedy" on him!

Natasha: You mean, "strategy" darling.

Boris: No, "stragedy"! I'm going to stragedy rope across the door and fasten the end to trigger on the shotgun, and when moose comes out the door, what is it?

Boris and Natasha: Is "tragedy"!

matthias, her brain didn't hear what my mouth said. ;)

Elmer and blfenton, I think she probably was mixing up the words colostomy and colonoscopy, and she probably never reads the actual question on the form--she just remembers #3 is the 'colonostomy' question. If my neighbor had made the same mistake, it wouldn't have fazed me, but it bugged me because the setting was a doctor's office.

Chi and Lars, yes, I think we all make those mistakes on occasion. My favorite 'strategy' mix up is the SNL GW Bush parody--strategery.

Don't get me started on cute, young, incompetent Physican's Assistants. Considering their limited education (Elmer's right) it's shocking how much patient contact some of them have--much more than the doctors in many cases.

Now you're all going to have me saying stragedy! As to the assistant, your father should have said, I don't know, what is a colonostomy? Maybe it's something we don't know about and should. :-)))

" I seen you at the corner yesterday" "I was an ath-a-leeet"--3 syllables-- I hear almost daily from a coworker. Chemical Counselor where I work so fairly educated. Ya have to chalk some things up to quirks.

Don't AX me....anything....or HAN- gry....instead of hungry.

G W Bush used several made-up words, like "misunderestimated" and "embetter". Basically, he could not speak English very well. Yale should be embarrassed for giving him a degree, but the University of Texas Law School (where my sister got her law degree) denied him admission. How he got into Harvard Business School, I do not know.

I often watch a series of talks about the Civil War given by university professors who are also authors about some specific battle or aspect of the war. I cannot tell you the number of times they will talk about the Calvary riding to the rescue or into battle. I remember as a child I had that problem with using that word wrong, but Ph.D.s who write about the war?????

> How he got into Harvard Business School, I do not know.

I have $ome idea why they admitted him. I'm $ure you do too.

lars, I think verbal miscues (especially when in a very public place like a speech, press event, etc.) are understandable because of the pressure. Mispronounciations because of not knowing a word are something different. Pronunciations because of regional or ethnic accents (I'd like to ax a question) are also something different.

There is a current Amazon TV ad for becoming an employee featuring warehouse workers. One woman (Caucasian as if that mattered, it doesn't) with a talking part says something like "I wou-nt be here if I di-nt like the challenge". A key consonant in each word dropped. A regional approach or the pronounciation of someone with an inadequate education, I don't know.

Two common but grating mispronunciations heard too often:

Subsidiary = sub sid er ary instead of the correct sub sid E ary.

Nuclear - nu cue lar instead of nu CLE ar.

I think some of you are misinformed about what is required to become a Physician Assistant. According to geteducated.com it requires the following :

Generally there are five steps to becoming a PA:

1. Complete your bachelor's degree (a science or healthcare related major is usually best);
2. Gain experience either working or volunteering in a healthcare setting;
3. Apply to ARC-PA accredited physician assistant programs;
4. Complete a 2-3 year, master's level PA program;
5. Pass the PANCE licensing exam. Yes, there are CNA's working in some offices, but even they have have medical training and have to pass a licensing exam.

Based on my experiences with PAs, I would say that's not enough training, Woodrose. "Usually best" doesn't sound like a requirement, and I've been told the bachelor's degree can be in anything. So the student basically ends up with a master's in a field he or she knew nothing about prior to going to graduate school.

I have to agree with Alisande as my experiences with PAs are similar. I'm finding more and more doctor's offices, including specialists, are letting PAs take over things which I personally want an MD to handle for me. I've had a bad experience with a PA (who was in over their head) which is coloring my perception of this.

If I think I may have the flu I'm fine with a PA, or an NP, seeing me. However once one starts dealing with serious health problems, I want to see an MD.

My caregivers ask if a nurse practitioner or physician's assistant is acceptable, not assuming you will accept whatever care. Is that not the case?

There is simply no comparison of the length of time and depth and intensity of training/study for any type of para-professional medical types (PA or NP) versus medical doctors. It's not close.

I'm okay at urgent care with a sore throat or something else vanilla seeing a non-doc who handles dozens of similar cases a week and follows standard steps, diagnostics and treatments as directed by a medical doctor. If it's something else, I'm usually asked and I say I prefer to see a medical doctor and no substitutions are acceptable. Yes, I'll wait if needed.

Why didn't you ask which she meant? Maybe she meant to say colonostomy or did you actually see the paperwork? (It IS a real thing you know...)

Cynic - there are two choices here:

colonoscopy, or

colostomy

Why do Brits say aluminium, is there a different anglicized spelling?

cynic, neither father, nor father-in-law, has had a colonoscopy or a colostomy--let alone a hybrid of the two--therefore their answers of "No" were correct, whatever she thought she was asking.

My dad has some hearing loss, so he might not have heard the mistake. However, I'm surprised my father-in-law, a former USAF medic, let it go so easily. His pet peeve as a civilian EMT, was a volunteer EMT instructor who told her students that CPR stands for 'cardio-pulmonary ressitation'.

If you don't get them both the first, mother goose, they may wind up with the second. That's not worst case, as you probably know.

Was the assistant a Physician's Assistant (PA), or simply an assistant/receptionist type making sure the forms were filled out correctly? Here, Physician's Assistants are highly educated and trained and can do many of the things MD's can do for in-office care and other specialties. A Master's Degree PA program is required in our state.

People will call someone working in a Dr, office an assistant in the same way they will call someone helping a Dentist a dental assistant. There is no comparison in the training for a PA and dental assistant, which requires only an Associates Degree.

I would inform the Dr. or the office manager of the assistant's mistake. Sounds like she needs some more training.

olychick, everything's relative but my understanding is that getting into a PA program isn't particularly difficult or competitive. So if admission to and completion of a non-competitive and short (2 years) program means someone is highly educated to you, fine. It doesn't to me. It's not much more than getting into a nursing program, which is also pretty non-competitive. Even physical therapy these days is a 4 year program after a BA or BS.

Okay, I'm ready to be attacked by RNs.

You're right Elmer, getting into a nursing program isn't particularly hard but staying in is. More than half the class failed when I went and a lot of nurses I've worked with over the years have said the same thing.

Thanks for the calm reaction. I love nurses and have a high degree of respect for the essential work they do. Heck, my mother was an RN. But nurses aren't primarily responsible to diagnose and determine treatment of illnesses and other maladies and my comment had that in mind when thinking of what's essentially just a few years of PA training to do that in some form. It's not much and someone with that under their belt is not someone I want to rely on for my health, except in very limited circumstances.

Well, not sure if the training is the same all over the country, but as I stated in my post, here in WA you must earn a Masters degree to be a PA. So you'd already have to have at least a Bachelor's in something related. Some RN's who go on to become PA's also have a Masters in Nursing. So, yes, I do consider that to be highly educated, vs an AA for dental assistant.

from Seattle University's PA info on their website (where two of my friends completed PA training)

Admissions

Consideration to schools usually requires the following:

• Bachelor's degree
• Completion of courses including General Biology, Microbiology, Anatomy & Physiology, Chemistry, Statistics and English
• Graduate Record Exam (GRE)
• 3 - 5 letters of recommendation, including from physician assistants
• At least 1 year (preferably 2 years) of paid experience providing direct patient care in a clinical setting

Well, I've worked with PAs in the hospital that I liked much better than a lot of doctors I came in contact with. They seemed to listen to the patient and nursing staff more. I've also seen nurses save patient's lives when doctors dismissed obvious symptoms and treatment, insisting they look at something closer or suggesting possible problems to them. Nurses also catch a lot of med errors, that not only go from the doctor's order through pharmacists (who are supposed to be experts on medication and have a lot more education some nurses).

It's not exactly the same but it reminds me of an incident that happened to me in my early 20s.

I had a follow up appointment with a specialist but he wasn't in the office that day (only time it EVER happened) so I saw his (I don't know if she was an NP or a PA). I had to have a biopsy of my vulvar area.

While my legs were in the stirrups, and RIGHT after she administered the lidocaine shot, she said, "I can't imagine getting one of these shots in my hoo-ha"

My hoo-ha. MY HOO-HA!!!

WTH?!?!?!?

I was so upset. When I had my follow up appointment regarding the results of the biopsy on my "hoo-ha", I told my doctor what she said.

I very calmly explained that I understand she may have been trying to be chummy or sympathetic but that it gives me NO comfort to hear a supposed medical professional refer to my vulva with a childish term.

I also stated in no uncertain terms that I did not want this woman to be part of my care team.

I don't know if she lost her job or if things were just arranged so she would never see me but I never had the displeasure of her care again.

I hope they talked to her and explained that it REALLY isn't appropriate to use slang terms with patients!

I said my mind before. Primary care physicians have no less than 7 and often up to 9 years of intense, demanding training after their Bachelors degrees, in programs that are highly selective and difficult to get into. Specialists often have more years of training. Anyone who is happy substituting someone who has 2 years of study in uncompetitive programs instead of being seen by a medical doctor should find opportunities to do so. You won't find me waiting in line in front of you.

Good!

I like the PA's at my GP. I see them if the doctors are unavailable (it's a walk-in clinic) for basic things like ear infections, but I will wait for a doctor/come back if I need something more serious.

Honestly I would have asked her what she was talking about.

I was using the term 'assistant' in a general sense. I didn't get a look at her badge, and she didn't introduce herself, except to say that she needed to ask some questions. If I'd known she was a PA, I'd have identified her as such in the OP. I wouldn't call her a receptionist--to me a receptionist is the person behind the desk, taking my name (and money), and scheduling appointments.

It doesn't matter to me if she's an actual PA, or a nurse, or a NA who was just hired yesterday--if she works in a physician's office she should know basic medical terminology, and should be able to read the words on a sheet of paper. I used to work in an office in the same hospital complex, and before I was hired I was given a basic medical terminology test.

My husband taught medical terminology, as well as courses in his chosen field, in the allied health program at our local college. As I mentioned, FIL was a medic and EMT. MIL was an RN. My sister-in-law is a nurse prac, and my son is a paramedic. Maybe being around folks in the medical field has made me more aware of minor mistakes, but colonoscopy is a very common term.

Since we're speaking of colonoscopies, everyone, please make sure you have your screenings. I had mine in July--not fun, but now I can relax for a few years.

Yep, I just had a colonoscopy on Tuesday and received a good report card thankfully. If you don't get regular screenings a colostomy could be in your future.

Original title was: Have you ever had a colonostomy?

This is my original post:

That's a question the assistant in my father-in-law's cardiologist's office asked him last week, when I accompanied him on a routine visit. I looked at FIL and said, "You've never had a colonoscopy, have you?" It evidently went right over her head, because today, my father had his routine appointment--same cardiologist, same assistant. She asked the same question, "Have you ever had a colonostomy?"

Today, I let it go. She was friendly, and well-groomed, and otherwise efficient. I usually don't let slight mispronunciations or grammatical errors bother me. I probably make my fair share--but an employee in a doctor's office, who makes the same mistake dozens of times a day? Harrumph.

The reason I brought this thread back is that I read on another forum that we can now edit the OP of a thread (until now we had an hour window to edit), so I thought I'd test it. According to my activity page, this is the last thread I started in KT.

I saw that on the other forum, and didn’t realize until you did this that one could really derail the whole nature of the forums, especially on HT, which is already rife with difficulties when comments within a thread are deleted.

Evidently only the OP can be edited--I don't see an edit button for my following comments, other than the two most recent, so the 1 week window for editing comments must still be in effect.

I do a lot of searches on old threads for questions in the Kitchens forum, so I can see this feature causing a problem. Although, I can't imagine anyone caring enough to go back and edit 'Anyone have marble countertops?' ;)

The thread in the other forum (Home Building) was asking the question of Emily H (admin). I doubt we'll get an answer before Monday.

HT is its own little world. Allowing primary edits there would be like requiring pasties at a titty bar, not really going to make a big difference as to the general tenor.

Aside from them, I think that this might be a good idea, resulting in clarifications to help a conversation. Or if the post was written in a moment of anger whether personal or political, surely the world, considered holistically, might be a better place if comments were reconsidered and other more kindly thoughtful ones used instead.

That's is a mental image I don't need . . .

If titles can be changed, it will make it impossible to go back and find one that you would like to visit again. Doesn't seem like a very good idea to me.