My son is looking for a primary care provider in his new city. Is it appropriate for him to see a doctor that’s associated with his med school? Someone who either teaches at the school or is one of the deans. I personally think it’s perfectly fine. But he told me it’s not appropriate.
I don’t see any problem with your son choosing a PCP associated with the med school. His treating physicians are bound by patient confidentiality and won’t be discussing his personal
information with anyone. It’s a major ethical violation. His classmates will not be able to access his medical EMR and if one should do something so stupid as to try, that person’s medical career is over. Patient privacy is very big deal and med schools do not take it lightly.
Both my daughters were treated by physicians/nurse practitioners who were on staff at the med school they attended.
D1 even brought her ankle fracture X-ray to her ortho mentor for second opinion one day when she happened to be assisting him in surgery. (IOW, she was never formally his patient; she just wanted his opinion. He told her her ankle was indeed broken and whoever read her x-ray & told her it wasn’t was a complete idiot…But that’s a whole other story.)
D1 was patient in the med school’s ER for acute appendicitis after she’d done 2 rotations through the dept. Her treating ER attendings (and PAs and nurses) were people she knew well and had hung out with for 3 years. The surgeon who removed her appendix was PGY4 that D1 had rotated with.
D2’s entire cancer treatment team were med school faculty members. The only request D2 made was that her year-classmates not be allowed to observe/assist with her surgeries, anesthesia, chemo, etc. She was Ok with MS3s & MS4s and residents sitting in.
I would suggest he not ask the Dean to be his PCP. (Simply because Deans seldom see patients. The bulk of their time is devoted to administrative duties and often their clinical skills are pretty rusty.)
At most medical schools, students are treated at student health clinic and will see whoever is on clinic duty that day. It might be a faculty member, a full time permanent clinic staffer, or a FM or IM resident.