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On Being a Doctor |6 November 2018

Want Fries With That?

Peter Louis Loper Jr., MD

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Author, Article, and Disclosure Information
  • Palmetto Health–University of South Carolina Medical Group, Columbia, South Carolina (P.L.L.)

    Corresponding Author: Peter Louis Loper Jr., MD, Palmetto Health–University of South Carolina Medical Group, 3555 Harden Street Extension, 15 Medical Park, Suite 141, Columbia, SC 29203; e-mail, peter.loper@palmettohealth.org.

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Motivated purely by curiosity, I wandered into a fast-food franchise the other day. I stood there, fascinated, amid the swirl of activity, the efficiency of service, the long lines of customers, and I listened, observed, and imagined. The provider greeted the customer with an enchanting smile and without hesitation served up to the hungry customer fats, grease, and calories that would ultimately be transformed into obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. The time for each encounter between provider and customer was, all told, about 10 minutes. The provider, head down, staring into the computer monitor, entered the data necessary for swift service and billing. There was hardly a glance toward the customer. There was no real connection or any discussion of the customer's needs. The provider did not ask, “How hungry are you?” “Would you prefer 250 calories or 1130?” “Eight grams of fat or 67?” “Do you really need 1920 mg of sodium, or would 480 mg suffice?”
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Loper PL. Want Fries With That?. Ann Intern Med. ;169:656. doi: 10.7326/M18-2250

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Published: Ann Intern Med. 2018;169(9):656.

DOI: 10.7326/M18-2250

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2018 American College of Physicians
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