I love Scott's answer.
In so many areas of medicine, there has been this great pushback against paternalism. My Dad was a doctor in the 1950's. Back then he was "The Doctor", explained nothing, told patients what to take and when, and would have been affronted beyond belief if anyone asked a question about his decision. He also felt that women were temperamentally unsuited to be doctors or operate machinery. He was not stupid or evil; he was the product of his time.
Now my wife is my medical partner, hunts big game and pilots aircraft, and my patients get reprints from UpToDate and we discuss treatment options.
It seems the next logical step is to begin to eliminate the need for prescriptions altogether. Patients would come in for consultation and education ("Doctor" means "Teacher" as was pointed out in another thread), then simply go buy whatever medication was decided upon. Or, skip the physician entirely and go buy whatever medication struck their fancy.
Personally, I'd be happy to be out of the prescribing loop. No more being sniped at by everyone from the DEA to the insurance companies. And the laws of natural selection would leave me with a patient population who appreciated what I have to offer and would value my advice.
