It would seem that there is far more which we agree upon than we might take issue with. And I do not want my take on the issue of personality to be misunderstood. My point was not that personality is not a valued asset to a surgeon, and one which should not be prized by his/her patients, but that patients, having little technical ability to judge their surgeon, other than for the anecdotal results they personally obtained and their estimation of the affability of the doctor, are not among the better sources for knowledgeable referral for friends and relatives.
It may well be, as you state,"that patients have the right to find a surgeon that possesses both the talents of a skilled surgeon and the ability to communicate." but the sorry state of things is that such doctors are in the minority, and given the choices at hand, skill and talent trump everything else.
I really think that there is an important difference between ability to interact socially with patients and being open to questions and being willing to supply answers in term which patients may absorb. I know of not just a few surgeons who's entire surgical presentation is, "Don't worry, we'll fix it." And if you have read some of my posts on the topic of MIS in podiatry, you know that I agree with your comment on MIS surgeons. Unfortunately, many times, these are the very doctors who have the best bedside manners and the most affability. They were likely talented in that fashion even prior to becoming doctors, and it is a skill which can exploit patients. How else could anyone be sold on a doctor performing blind bone surgery?
In my view, becoming a good consumer is a learnable skill, and if one will take the time and make the effort required, benefits will accrue. But once in even the most competent of doctor's office, the patient also needs to have certain patient skills, not the least of which is his/her own ability to communicate, as the patient is clearly an integral part of the doctor-patient relationship.
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