My point was, I have never, ever heard of a doc refusing to make a referral if a patient asked for one. Or, in the case of primary care docs these days, they seem to want to shove their patients off to specialists at the drop of a hat. It DEFINITELY ain't like the old days, when the family doc would do just about everything, even minor surgeries, in their office. (I vividly recall having ingrown toenails extracted, and the top of a big toe sliced off in the family docs clinic way back when. No way in Heyall would that be done today.)

Did not mean to step on your toes, but I stand by my original intent. Docs will do referrals, instead of attempting anything themselves like the old timey family docs used to do.

And don't even get me started on modern paperwork. If you are really a doc, you already know about that, dealing with insurance companies, as well as your own staff paperwork. The medical profession kills a LOT of trees making paper.