perspective

Being on dermatology i've been dealing with lot of little rashes, itchiness of an  unknown cause, anxiety provoking moles, spots, dots, and the like.  And for some of the more chronic things like eczema and psoriasis, I feel like patients are never satisfied.  Some have only the mildest form and yet they always ask - can i get rid of this? do i have to use these meds forever?  is there anything else you can do?  and By this point they've got big gun steroids and creams being thrown at them.  And they're skin is truly not that bad.  Now I realize if it was my skin I may feel like them, I realize that.  But also I wish some of these patients could see the more moderate or severe cases and see that theirs isn't that bad.  Right?  There are people with worse problems if that makes anyone feel any better.
  On a brighter note it is exciting that as a family med practitioner  I can easily treat the things the derm docs do.
  Today I watched Mohs surgery.  Its quite a detailed procedure for a very small area of of the face.  All to protect from a benign cancer - basal cell and a more malignant but not usually a cause of death squamous cell carcinoma, from causing a cosmetic scar to the face.  I appreciated the time and care the docs put into making sure the patients eye lid wasn't puckered after the suturing but wow it took so long.  I guess in the end the pt will have a very minimal scar on her cheek, but she certainly had to be very patient to attain it.