doctor shop

or doc·tor-shop

[ dok-ter shop ]

verb (used with or without object)

1. to obtain prescriptions for a controlled substance from more than one healthcare practitioner at a time:

   Some patients doctor shop in an attempt to score multiple prescriptions for painkillers.

   One theory about the celebrity’s fatal overdose is that the medication may have been doctor-shopped.

2. to visit one physician after another in search of a satisfactory one or a particular outcome:

   The patient appears to have schizophrenia, and to have doctor shopped for a diagnosis of autism.

Other Words From

• doc·tor shop·per doc·tor-shop·per noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of doctor shop¹

First recorded in 1970–75; back formation from doctor shopping ( def )

Example Sentences

Reglar Doctor-Shop, 'Arrygate is; see their photos all over the town.

From Project Gutenberg