6 Things Your Doctor Should Never Say (PHOTOS)

You would think that after 35 years of being in practice and having made the same mistake before, I would know better. It may be why they call it medical "practice." I recently sat down in the examination room across from a 72-year-old man who had experienced a mild stroke a few weeks earlier. He was able to give a coherent history and after listening to his story, I looked over at the younger woman seated next to him and asked, "Does your daughter have anything to add to what you have told me?" I knew I was in trouble the minute I said it and was politely informed that she was his wife and not his daughter! Been there, done that one before. You would think I would have learned my lesson.

This got me thinking of all the other things a doctor should never say to a patient. Clearly the above was a never say moment and certainly one I'd like to forget. I started to think of how many times my colleagues have had to extract their foot from their mouth, and sent around an email to collect their foot-in-mouth moments. Here's a list of things a doctor should never say to a patient.