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Third-party requests for medical tests: why we shouldn’t just go with the flow
The other day a patient came to see me with the chief complaint, “My naturopath wants me to get these blood tests.” He then handed me a note with a litany of tests, including some I nearly never order. This patient expected to simply place his order and for me to comply. When I asked him to describe why he had originally sought help, he seemed rather surprised and annoyed. I felt like a fast-food worker in a drive-through