Dr. Phil

tallaght01

I have a day off today. I'm happy to report that Australian daytime TV is even worse than daytime TV in Ireland and the UK.

So, to compensate for this, they import some of the more popular shows from abroad. Today's offering was Oprah, follwed by Dr. Phil.

Dr. Phil is a psychiatrist. A proper one, too. Qualified as a medical doctor, with subsequent specialist training in psychiatry.

I am very much against the idea of using people and their personal difficulties as a form of entertainment. But I was watching TV in bed, and the remote was too far away from me to change the channel.

I'm sure most of you are familiar with Dr. Phil. But for those of you who aren't he brings people onto his show who have problems. These may be mental health problems, relationship problems, or family problems. Then, in the 10 or 15 minute slot you get allotted, he solves your problem.

Now, I have issues with this concept in the first place. After watching his show today, it's very obvious that some of these people have proper mental health problems. Can somebody who's mentally ill give proper informed consent to go on a show like that. Are we sure they understand the potential repercussions of going public? if not, they shouldn't be on the show.

Then there's the whooping audience. I swear, it was like jerry springer. If the "patient" tries to make an opposing point to that of the good doctor, he puts them down with a cutting retort there and then, and the audience cheers and whoops and claps. So the "patient" won't speak up again. So, they take Dr Phil's wisdom on board, and their life is fixed.

In today's show he told a woman that her husband doesn't love her, and that she should get out of the marriage. Big stuff for a 15 minute consult. The poor guy was sitting there swearing that he loves his wife. But, no, Dr. Phil says the marriage is over. I think most psychs would refer them for some kind of counselling.

But the most disturbing thing was a child he had on. This kid was nuts. About 10 years old with horrendous behavioural problems. It was one of the worst kids I've ever seen. Now, my psych experience is limited to doing the child psych clinic once a week, but even I knew that kid has some serious problems.

So, after showing some home video of this kid going nuts in his house, the audience disliked him already. So when this 10 year old child walked out on stage the audience were booing him!!! jesus!!!

Then Dr.Phil basically spent 15 minutes telling him how bad he is, and how crap he makes life for his folks. Everytime he said something like "you're just selfish. You don't care for anyone but yourself" etc the audience went into a frenzy of cheers and whoops, and the kid was close to tears.

I was rageing. Really rageing mad. I honestly beieve that, after seeing that performance, he should be struck off. He has no right to practise as a doctor. This kid needs a child psychiatrist and counselling. His parents need to geta grip and not bring him on TV in front of milions of worldwide viewers. The end result was presumably an angrier kid than they had in the first place. A kid who now trusts his parents, and the doctors who might have been able to help him, a lot less than he might have otherwise. This is a kid who can't have made an informed choice to go on TV

Has anyone else seen this guy? Does anyone else agree with me? or do you guys think he does more good than harm?

c - 13

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Sorry I just felt that appropriate.

All these shows are just cheap tat thrown together to make others feel better about themselves. Regardless of whether he's a real psychiatrist or not is really irrelevant, its only for entertainment purposes.

Its totally wrong to bring children especially onto this kind of show. If they didnt have issues before they certainly do now.

I think a good amount of these people on the show are only actors either way.

In the words of Niles Crane "Really Fraiser, you lost your values as a real psychiatrist the day you started that silly little talk show"

Sangre

c - 13 wrote: »

Regardless of whether he's a real psychiatrist or not is really irrelevant

I disagree completely. He should be held to a much higher standard because of it. A licensed profession should never breach the standards, ethics or practices laid down by his accrediting body, especially in the name of entertainment. This is even more pertinent when people's physical or mental health can be affected.

If a medical doctor on a show was constantly misdiagnosing patients then he would shown unfit to practice and should be struck off (in extreme cases), he shouldn't be allowed to harm patients, whether for entertainment or in a private capacity.

Edit to add that the Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists imposed disciplinary sanctions on McGraw on January 27, 1989 for an inappropriate "dual relationship" reported in 1988 by a therapy client/employee from 1984. Also in the aftermath of the Spears incidence where he breached her trust one professional psychologist filed a complaint with the California Board of Psychology alleging that Dr. Phil practiced clinical psychology without a license and violated doctor-patient privilege by discussing Spears' case with the media. He also started a petition to have the Dr. Phil show removed from the air.

Odysseus

As a therapist I fully agree with you Tallaght01, but what can you do. My understanding of the people who watch this kind of show are those who are looking for quick answers and fixes; as opposed to working through a process and Dr Phil certainly gives them. Its just that they are superficial ones. Yes

c - 13

Sangre wrote: »

I disagree completely. He should be held to a much higher standard because of it. A licensed profession should never breach the standards, ethics or practices laid down by his accrediting body, especially in the name of entertainment. This is even more pertinent when people's physical or mental health can be affected.

If a medical doctor on a show was constantly misdiagnosing patients then he would shown unfit to practice and should be struck off (in extreme cases), he shouldn't be allowed to harm patients, whether for entertainment or in a private capacity.

Edit to add that the Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists imposed disciplinary sanctions on McGraw on January 27, 1989 for an inappropriate "dual relationship" reported in 1988 by a therapy client/employee from 1984. Also in the aftermath of the Spears incidence where he breached her trust one professional psychologist filed a complaint with the California Board of Psychology alleging that Dr. Phil practiced clinical psychology without a license and violated doctor-patient privilege by discussing Spears' case with the media. He also started a petition to have the Dr. Phil show removed from the air.

Sorry, I don't think I explained myself correctly. I don't think it matters to the viewers of this show that he's a trained professional or a trained chimp. The general target of this sort of show is the general ****e talking masses that want to see other people beaten down on their off the wall problems, and this makes them in turn feel better about their more menial problems

Obviously if this guy took himself seriously as a professional then he wouldn't even be in this game.

Sangre

in that case i agree with you completely.

ZorbaTehZ

c - 13 wrote: »

Obviously if this guy took himself seriously as a professional then he wouldn't even be in this game.

I'm sure his paycheck makes it all worthwhile tbh.

Nothingcompares

tallaght01 wrote: »

Dr. Phil is a psychiatrist. A proper one, too. Qualified as a medical doctor, with subsequent specialist training in psychiatry.

Are we talking about the same Dr. Phil? The big guy with the moustache? I read on wikipedia he is a clinical psychologist with a PhD so he's a proper Doctor but certainly not a medical one.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_McGraw

JuliusCaesar

I don't know if it's true, but I was told by an American Psychologist that he does not maintain membership of any professional body SO THAT he can't be held liable against a professional ethical code.

It's just a step on from various TV programmes here (which I won't name for fear of libel!) and the professionals commentating on reality TV type programmes. Many of them in my opinion way overstep their professional competence. IMHO.

tallaght01

Nothingcompares wrote: »

Are we talking about the same Dr. Phil? The big guy with the moustache? I read on wikipedia he is a clinical psychologist with a PhD so he's a proper Doctor but certainly not a medical one.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_McGraw

Ahh, I see. I was told by someone that he's an MD.

Oh well, i feel less professional shame now. Psychologists...hang yizzer collective heads

Odysseus

The worst thing is that some people pay attention to this sh!te. In one of the community clinics where I work one of the drug workers used to be on his website all the time looking for interventions for addiction treatment. Now fair enough she is not clinical staff but Dr Phil type interventions in Tallaght:eek: I had to get the co-ordinator to have a word.

JuliusCaesar

tallaght01 wrote: »

Oh well, i feel less professional shame now. Psychologists...hang yizzer collective heads

there's bad eggs in every basket....

very hard to say when ppl are stepping outside their professional competence & into the realm of pop psychology.