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.

Origin of doctor shop

1
First recorded in 1970–75; back formation from doctor shopping

Other words from doctor shop

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

Words Nearby doctor shop

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use doctor shop in a sentence