History Main / DoctorsOrders

* A later episode of ''Series/{{MASH}}'' dealt with Col. Potter being diagnosed with high blood pressure when Hawkeye gives him his annual physical, which would spell the end of his army career. Hawkeye refused to alter the BP reading, telling Potter "You wouldn't do it for me", but did agree to give him time to try and bring it down.

* Comes up sometimes in ''Franchise/StarTrek,'' where the ship's doctor has the authority to relieve the captain of command if the doctor believes the captain is physically or mentally unfit for duty.
** An early instance is in the ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' episode "[[Recap/StarTrekS3E9TheTholianWeb The Tholian Web]]", where Spock tells Bones to do it if he believes it proper.
** In "[[Recap/StarTrekS2E6TheDoomsdayMachine The Doomsday Machine]]", [[DeathSeeker Commodore Decker]] takes advantage of Kirk being stuck on his crippled ship to take command of the ''Enterprise'' and go after the Planet Killer to [[MobySchtick avenge his lost crew]]. Bones tries, but can't relieve him because Decker refuses to submit to an evaluation, and holds Bones and Spock to regulations that allow him to pull rank. Kirk and Spock risk a court martial to finally force Decker to stand down and proceed to sickbay for his evaluation, but it never gets that far as Decker gets away from his [[RedShirt security escort]] and [[TakingYouWithMe pilots a shuttlecraft into the maw of the machine]].
** In "[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS3E18Allegiance Allegiance]]" from ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' it's shown that mere suspicion isn't enough. If you don't have some hard evidence, you could risk being charged with mutiny. Since Crusher can't find anything medically wrong with the doppelganger impersonating Picard, the crew's options are limited.

* Defied in one episode of ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'' -- normally, a trainer obeys Nurse Joy if a Pokemon is too injured to be released out of the Pokemon Center or is being pushed too hard in training. [[StopHavingFunGuys Paul]], on the other hand, couldn't give a Rattata's tail if he was told his Chimchar needed to be benched for the next round of the current tournament. He uses it to battle anyway, and declares [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUefulness it's outlived its usefulness]] afterward.

* Whenever a member of the [[Franchise/{{Batman}} Bat-clan]] gets sick and/or injured enough that they absolutely ''need'' to rest, Alfred Pennyworth ''will'' do anything he can to make sure that their fool-asses stay in bed so they can heal properly.

* Whenever a member of the [[Franchise/{{Batman}} Bat-clan]] gets sick or injured enough that they ''need'' rest, Alfred will make sure their fool-asses stay in bed so they can heal properly.

** When Cross considers [[spoiler:making a quick SBS broadcast]], Chopper throws several scapels around the tactician's hands, and orders him to refrain from doing anything that would bring the marines to the Strawhats while Chopper sleeps off the exhaustion from the numerous patients he had to treat, or he will tear off his limbs and have Sanji cook them for dinner. Cross takes this threat very seriously.

** For ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'' an additional wrinkle was thrown in: due to personnel losses in the first episode, the ship's doctor is a hologram. As such, the captain ''could'' just shut him down if she doesn't want to follow his orders -- or even reprogram him, as happened to his counterpart on the ''Equinox''. The problem, as touched upon in [[ResetButton one episode that didn't actually happen in the end]], is that while Janeway is ''usually'' sane enough to keep her rebellions against doctor's order to small things like dragging her feet about having check-ups, there's nothing saying that will still be the case when she is unhealthy enough that she ''should'' be relieved of command.

* In ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' fic ''Fanfic/WhyandWere'' by Creator/AAPessimal, Assassin Johanna Smith-Rhodes is patched up in the field by an Igor and ignores his advice not to put any strain on a broken forearm. She concludes her contract by firing a powerful crossbow, and the recoil and stress re-breaks the arm. The Guild's Matron Igorina is suitably sarcastic and acerbic.

** Invoked when questioned about an alleged mutiny, Janeway says they were acting under the orders of the [[YouAreInCommandNow senior surviving]] medical authority. A flashback shows the 'doctor' was a Hospital Corpswoman Third Class, the lowest ranking medic on board, but [[LoopholeAbuse enough to justify their actions legally.]]

** An early instance is in the ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' episode "The Tholian Web", where Spock tells Bones to do it if he believes it proper.
** In "The Doomsday Machine", [[DeathSeeker Commodore Decker]] takes advantage of Kirk being stuck on his crippled ship to take command of the ''Enterprise'' and go after the Planet Killer to [[MobySchtick avenge his lost crew]]. Bones tries, but can't relieve him because Decker refuses to submit to an evaluation, and holds Bones and Spock to regulations that allow him to pull rank. Kirk and Spock risk a court martial to finally force Decker to stand down and proceed to sickbay for his evaluation, but it never gets that far as Decker gets away from his [[RedShirt security escort]] and [[TakingYouWithMe pilots a shuttlecraft into the maw of the machine]].
** In "Allegiance" from ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' it's shown that mere suspicion isn't enough. If you don't have some hard evidence, you could risk being charged with mutiny. Since Crusher can't find anything medically wrong with the doppelganger impersonating Picard, the crew's options are limited.

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* ZigZagged in ''Literature/ArtemisFowl'': The CorruptCorporateExecutive's doctors are very much aware of his Mafia connections, so they give medical advice very politely. In fact, when he sends his secretary out for celebratory cigars, she invokes this trope by trying to remind him of what the doctors said before remembering who she's talking to.

* There are so many times in ''Literature/WarriorCats'' when the medicine cat says "As your medicine cat, I'm ''ordering'' you to rest" or something along those lines - even when the cat they're ordering around is their Clan leader and older than them.
* In Creator/JohnHemry's Literature/TheLostFleet novel ''Invincible'', Geary orders a day of rest despite many urgent needs, because exhaustion is hampering their work efforts. He suspects that a doctor who speaks to him hasn't slept for days, including that one, and thinks of how doctors take their oaths more seriously than they do their positions as officers.
* In Creator/DanAbnett's Literature/GauntsGhosts novel ''His Last Command'', Dorden strenously resists Gaunt's orders to revive Mkoll, though he gives up in the end.
* In Creator/JimButcher's Literature/TheDresdenFiles novel ''Literature/ColdDays'', Butters gives them to Harry, who takes them more seriously than he usually takes orders, but not seriously enough for Butters's taste.

* In Creator/JRRTolkien's ''[[Literature/TheLordOfTheRings Return of the King]]'', Faramir tells Éowyn that even if he had assumed his authority as Steward, he would be reluctant to override that of the Warden of the Houses of Healing in the matter of her health.
* In Creator/JulieKagawa's ''Literature/TheIronDaughter'', the nurse treats Ash's getting up after she treated his wounds as YouthIsWastedOnTheDumb. When Puck laughs, she turns on him and demands to stitch his wounds.
* In Richard Ellis Preston Jr.'s Literature/ChroniclesOfThePneumaticZeppelin novel ''Romulus Buckle & the Engines of War'', Romulus tells Max, while treating her injuries that she disobeyed him as her captain, but now that he's her surgeon, she has to obey him.
* In Creator/TerryPratchett's ''Literature/FeetOfClay'', Vimes cites this to keep people out of the Patrician's sick room. The doctor in question is actually a vet specializing in race horses.

* In ''Literature/TheChocolateTouch'', John's doctor, Dr. Cranium, tells his parents that John needs to stop eating chocolate for the sake of his health. John's parents are in complete agreement with him.
* In the novelisation of ''Film/{{Alien}}'', Ash wants to preserve the body of the dead facehugger, over the objections of Ripley. Captain Dallas points out to her that as Science Officer he can overrule him in his area of specialty.

* Invoked in a series of ads for Dr. Pepper where various people ([[Series/{{Frasier}} Kelsey Grammer]], [[Music/{{KISS}} Gene Simmons]], Music/DrDre, etc.) who are known in pop culture for being or having the nickname "doctor" shill for Dr. Pepper saying, "[[TrustMeImAnX trust me, I'm a doctor]]."

* In Britain where Prime Minister David Cameron was visiting a hospital, and hadn't done all the health and safety stuff. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JapsssNVs4 The doctor, as you will not be surprised to find out, shouted down the prime minister]].

* ''Fanfic/TheBoltChronicles'': In “The Coffee Shop,” veterinarian Penny scolds Bolt for eating and drinking things that pack on weight and will jeopardize his health. She puts the dog on a diet, and he returns back to fighting trim.

* ''Rocketship Voyager''

[[folder:Fanfiction]]

Not to be confused with the ''Franchise/StarTrek'' novel ''Doctor's Orders'', although the title is a pun on this trope.

* In Creator/TerryPratchett's ''Discworld/FeetOfClay'', Vimes cites this to keep people out of the Patrician's sick room. The doctor in question is actually a vet specializing in race horses.

* TruthInTelevision for UsefulNotes/YanksWithTanks. If a patient of ''any'' rank defies medical orders and makes his illness or injury worse, he can be charged with willfully damaging government property (himself). Even during [[TrainingFromHell Basic Training or Boot Camp]] drill instructors can't order a recruit to do any activity that violates a medical profile.