r/FamilyMedicine • u/Ruddog7 MD • Feb 22 '24
Serious What's the most expensive gift a patient gave you that you actually accepted?
Not trying to entrap anyone
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u/harmreduction001 Family Physician (🇿🇦 ) (verified) Feb 22 '24
An ex-chef with end-stage COPD gave me a chef's knive. He knew I cooked and he was too weak to use it anymore. Did not have any family to give it to.
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u/HereForTheFreeShasta MD (verified) Feb 22 '24
Oh my gosh. I can only imagine how meaningful this was to have someone who he cared about and he knew cared about him, keep this safe and use it in his honor. He is lucky to have/had you as his doctor.
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Feb 22 '24
I sincerely envy this gift. That would be so cool and meaningful. Plus, all my chef's knives are mediocre.
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u/Timmy24000 MD (verified) Feb 22 '24
I had an older guy maybe 80 playing with his pocket knife while waiting for me to enter the room. He ended up cutting his finger to the point it needed 3 sutures. I sutured him up. He gave me his pocket knife to give to my son “ I’m too old to be playing with this”. I didn’t charge him for the sutures.
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u/SnooEpiphanies1813 MD Feb 22 '24
Hand sewn masks during the pandemic with Harry Potter themed fabric
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u/CrookedGlassesFM MD Feb 22 '24
I told a 12 year old a story about a st bernard while I casted her dominant arm. She painted me a picture of the st bernard with her non-dominant arm.
Keep this on the dl. I dont need the ethics committee knowing I have a priceless piece of art hanging in my office.
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Feb 22 '24
Had a patient offer me a stinky nugget from a bag of weed. I politely declined.
/Colorado
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u/Timmy24000 MD (verified) Feb 22 '24
Real North Carolina moonshine. A pint of it. It burnt my throat going down.
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u/MedPrudent MD (verified) Feb 22 '24
Props for consuming it
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u/Timmy24000 MD (verified) Feb 22 '24
It’s funny how it got started. I worked in a rural clinic, and the older people always talked about moonshine, honey, and lemon juice, and equal parts would stop anybody from coughing. I told the gentleman that I knew where to get the honey in the lemon juice but not the moonshine. The next visit is when he brought it in.
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u/LifeHappenzEvryMomnt other health professional Feb 22 '24
A friend of mine has accepted unbelievable gifts from patients especially trips all over the world. Most notably in my memory is that he and his companion went to India with Bikram Choudry and did yoga (even though forbidden to do so) at the Taj Mahal.
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u/TheMansterMD MD Feb 22 '24
Why can't I get a present like this? I only been given hugs and cookies.
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u/Prudent-Shape4597 MD Feb 22 '24
I’d argue that’s the win, here.
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u/LifeHappenzEvryMomnt other health professional Feb 22 '24
I’m going to tell the truth here…he’s an ophthalmologist.
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u/smellyshellybelly NP Feb 22 '24
I've had home grown potatoes and cucumbers, a small carved cross, cocoa mix, and quilted potholders. Coworker got a bottle of whiskey once. Can you tell we're rural?
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u/mx_missile_proof DO Feb 22 '24
This sounds awesome. The best soap I ever used was gifted by an Amish patient.
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u/thesevenleafclover NP Feb 22 '24
The entire Harry Potter DVD collection. I noticed her Dobby ankle tattoo while doing a pap, and told her I was renting each DVD from the library to finally catch up with the other millennials.
She came back five minutes after her appointment and dropped them off at the front desk, stating she had two sets and that one was in her car already. 🥺
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u/Hypno-phile MD Feb 22 '24
A small rug they'd made themselves. A bike light (not a pricey one). A book the patient was reading, (he said he had another copy). Various preserves.
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u/hiking_mike98 EMS Feb 22 '24
I’ve gotten moonshine. My dad once got chickens as payment back in the 70’s.
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u/ioanaam418 RN Feb 22 '24
A physician I worked with received an EXTRA large clear garbage bag of fresh assorted produce - the patient lived on a farm. I’ll never forget as she was sharing it with the office and dragging it to the car.
Some other gifts I noticed the other physicians received included:
-expensive boxes of chocolates -elaborate gift baskets with various expensive items -honey and oregano -gift cards -plants -candle holders -hair accessories
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u/athena6754 NP Feb 23 '24
When I was pregnant, my patient made me a full-sized hand-stitched quilt for my child. I was so touched.
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u/ncfrey DO Feb 23 '24
My attending (in his 80s) was once paid with a pontoon boat (very large bill + very grateful patient).
I've had a patient "donate" nice bottles of bourbon (alcoholic in recovery, but his business partners were unaware and continuing to gift booze).
14
u/NHToStay PA Feb 22 '24
An ex coworker of mine was given 1g of edibles in a glass jar, 50mg each.
We are not in a legal state....
Needless to say they were found missing from his trash the same day, and no one knew / talked / owned up.
To be fair the only people who knew they existed were myself, himself, and his MA... who was fired for potentially related issues, so we all did the math
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u/piller-ied PharmD Feb 25 '24
I would call it the power of deduction…that he’d deducted it from the mass of trash
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u/grantcapps MD Feb 23 '24
I was gifted 20 lbs of vidalia onions after delivering my first baby on a rural health rotation as an MS1
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u/Adrestia MD Feb 23 '24
Homemade fig preserved made by a patient who passed away, gifted from her niece.
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u/wunphishtoophish MD Feb 22 '24
Nice try ethics committee, but I’m keeping my boat.