As primitive as modern medicine still really is, I think it is important to remember that it is not like engineers with no medical training are actually going to do any better. Yes, you figured out that you had low blood sugar. Doctors would have as well. If that weren't the case, we'd sack all the doctors and hire engineers to fill the hospitals instead.
Put it this way: your average highschool geek can program a little. If they put their back into it, it is not unheard of for them to engineer solutions to whatever it is that they are trying to achieve (they are after all rather bright.) On particularly rare occasions, the untrained highschooler can teach himself enough to rival seasoned software developers in a very narrow segment of the field, but will quickly be out of his depth again if the situation changes.
I would say the gap between highschool geek and seasoned software developer is somewhat comparable to the gap between engineer and medical doctor (if anything, the comparison gives doctors too little credit.) The difference really is that you are playing with your own health, not some relatively speaking inconsequential software.
(This all said, the cost problem is of course very real.)
>I don't think we're that far past doctors just being quacks throwing spaghetti at the proverbial wall. They don't seem to be able to, in any given single case, observe/detect/test for much unless there's an associated infection or physical injury.
Put it this way: your average highschool geek can program a little. If they put their back into it, it is not unheard of for them to engineer solutions to whatever it is that they are trying to achieve (they are after all rather bright.) On particularly rare occasions, the untrained highschooler can teach himself enough to rival seasoned software developers in a very narrow segment of the field, but will quickly be out of his depth again if the situation changes.
I would say the gap between highschool geek and seasoned software developer is somewhat comparable to the gap between engineer and medical doctor (if anything, the comparison gives doctors too little credit.) The difference really is that you are playing with your own health, not some relatively speaking inconsequential software.
(This all said, the cost problem is of course very real.)