logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2022
33m 59s

24. How Can You Choose the Best Doctor?

Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher
About this episode

We often select doctors based on their reputations or on misconceptions about what really matters. But research shows that doctors’ experience and where they trained can significantly impact patient care. 

Up next
Jul 2023
The Economics of Everyday Things: Animal Urine
In the newest show from the Freakonomics Radio Network, host Zachary Crockett explores the hidden side of the things around us. This week: One creature’s trash is another’s cash. (Or, how one man found profit in pee.) 
12m 57s
Jul 2023
Tom Brady, A.D.H.D., and a Really Bad Headache (Bonus)
A sneak peek at Bapu's new book, Random Acts of Medicine, available now from Doubleday, and an announcement about the show. 
37m 40s
Mar 2023
78. Do Kids Cause Divorce?
Couples get divorced for all kinds of reasons. Is having kids one of them? Bapu talks about research that investigates what happens to parents who unexpectedly have twins. Plus, an announcement about the future of the show. 
18m 50s
Recommended Episodes
Aug 2022
The root cause of undiagnosed pain | Sheetal DeCaria
While doctors take an oath to do no harm, there's a good chance their unconscious biases can seep into how seriously they take your pain. Physician Sheetal DeCaria explains how perception impacts the medical care and treatment of chronic pain -- and calls for health care professi ... Show More
13m 16s
Sep 2023
Ep. 116 - How to Avoid Medical Errors in Medicine
Dr. Donald Redelmeier, a Professor at the University of Toronto Medical School, is an expert in training doctors how to reduce medical errors. He shares how he thinks doctors should think. 
51m 22s
May 2021
Wellbeing - Questions to ask yourself, if you think medicine may no longer be for you
The pandemic has wrought a lot of change, not least to doctors relationship to their careers. While still loving the patient interaction, we're increasingly hearing that doctors are disillusioned with the other aspects of medicine. If you're feeling that way, there are ways to st ... Show More
42m 14s
Dec 2022
70 - A Doctor's Work
What do doctors actually do? Are they Sherlockian detectives, hunting down obscure clues to solve intractable cases? Are they virtuosic experts, training for half a lifetime to bring the latest science to bear to cure disease? Or are they clerks, whose main job is to collect and ... Show More
49m 14s
Oct 2021
Introducing Doctor Informed
Doctor Informed is a new podcast for hospital doctors, from The BMJ - created in collaboration with THIS Institute, and sponsored by Medical Protection. Medical expertise is fundamental to the practice of medicine. But other skills and knowledge are important too. Doctor Informed ... Show More
14m 11s
May 2018
Breaking Bad News
When a doctor reveals a terminal diagnosis to a patient -- that process is as delicate a procedure as any surgery, with potentially serious consequences if things go wrong. If the patient doesn’t understand their prognosis, for example, they could end up making uninformed decisio ... Show More
39m 3s
Jan 2023
The bias behind your undiagnosed chronic pain | Sheetal DeCaria
While doctors take an oath to do no harm, there's a good chance their unconscious biases can seep into how seriously they treat pain. Physician Sheetal DeCaria explains how perception impacts medical care and treatment -- and calls for health care professionals to check in with t ... Show More
19m 35s
Mar 2022
Should your doctor be an influencer?
Doctors are taking to platforms like TikTok and Twitter to make medicine less of a mystery for people—and becoming celebrities along the way. But the ethics here are in a very grey area. We’ve seen how misinformation can run rampant on social media. And we’ve also seen that it do ... Show More
41m 44s
Apr 2024
The Ethical Doctor – David V Goliath- Dr Charles Hoffe
Many others would have broken under the intense pressure, but this Christian doctor in Canada continues to fight for his patients and humanity. He needs legal funding. Read the write-up at: https://www.ukcolumn.org/video/the-ethical-doctor-david-v-goliath-dr-charles-hoffe 
1h 10m