When a patient comes to a health care provider with intense chronic pain, and the health care provider sends the same patient away still in intense chronic pain, I don't believe the health care provider has done anything to reduce the patient's risk of addiction.
Getting asked -- and defending against what I consider nosy asking -- various incarnations of, "Why don't you just..." might be one of my least favorite aspects of chronic pain and the MenstroMonster.
For my last several pelvic examinations, this has not meant scooching farther down so my bum practically hung over the end of the exam table. Even though my reproductive organs were undergoing the exam, the "positioning" I speak of had much more to do with my feet.
A lot of people are worried about how taxpayers are going to cover the cost of comprehensive health care in the U.S. And assuming that nothing about the tax system is going to change (i.e., the super rich will continue not to have to pay their fair share), I think this is a valid and justified concern.
