Is TV's 'House' really a medical genius?
I love 'House.' For me, it's still can't miss TV. But after six seasons, I've come to the realization that Dr. Gregory House, played with bad-ass perfection by British actor Hugh Laurie, isn't the medical genius he's cracked up to be. In almost every episode, House and his team are confronted with a medical mystery. During the hour, House comes up with at least 5 or 6 wrong diagnoses and quickly prescribes drugs, tests, procedures and sometimes even surgeries, which do nothing to help the patient and much of the time causes them undue pain and suffering. At the end of the show, House has some kind of revelation, which finally leads to the correct diagnosis. Whether the patient lives or dies is irrelevant. The important thing is that House has solved the medical mystery and his ego and curiosity are satisfied. It seems to me that House's brilliance is more process of elimination than genius. But it's still fun to watch. By the way, if I ever get really ill, I hope I wind up at House's fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital. Patients there get terrific non-stop care by a team of top doctors who can order up any test, procedure or surgery at the snap of a finger, with no waiting and no expense spared. Now that's healthcare reform I can support.
