Just because you demand it
I won’t prescribe them like a lemming,
You’ve made my life so difficult
Sir Alexander Fleming.
I know it would be easier
To write ‘Amoxicillin’,
But it wouldn’t be good medicine
And so I am not willin’
To be coerced by your shouting
Or the claim you won’t get better
Despite my explanation and
Patient info letter
Which explains you’ve got a virus
And t’would be no good for you
To pump you with antibiotics
And give you thrush and runny poo.
So forgive me if I try to
Follow best practice and do it right …
But we both know you’ll call out-of hours
And get antibiotics tonight.
I wrote this at a workshop entitled Conflicts in Medicine when we were encouraged to use poetry to express conflicts encountered within our clinical practice. I expect many GPs will be familiar with this particular problem!
- © British Journal of General Practice 2015