GESTIÓN EN SALUD PÚBLICA: Should doctors’ social media profiles be scrutinised?

domingo, 19 de agosto de 2018

Should doctors’ social media profiles be scrutinised?

Should doctors’ social media profiles be scrutinised?

Bioedge

Should doctors’ social media profiles be scrutinised?

by Xavier Symons | 18 Aug 2018 | 1 comment

Doctors and politicians have slammed proposed changes to the code of conduct of the Medical Board of Australia, alleging that the organisation is attempting to limit freedom of speech.

The Board, which is responsible for licensing doctors and investigating complaints, has just concluded a period of public consultation on revisions to its code of conduct, entitled "Good medical practice: A code of conduct for doctors in Australia". Among the changes are significant revisions to the document’s professionalism section. On matters such as social media usage, the revised document states:

If making public comment, you should acknowledge the profession’s generally accepted views and indicate when your personal opinion differs. Behaviour which could undermine community trust in the profession is at odds with good medical practice and may be considered unprofessional.

The Australian Medical Association fears that the proposed changes will silence dissenting opinion. AMA president Tony Bartone said that the changes risked “stifling doctors’ right to publicly express both personal and professional opinions while also undermining doctors’ contribution to the diversity of public opinion, debate, and discourse”.

“Many doctors don’t personally agree with abortion, contraception or voluntary assisted dying”, Dr Bartone said. “Just because a doctor does not hold ‘the profession’s generally accepted views’ on a particular social matter does not indicate a lack of medical professionalism or substandard medical practice”.

The proposed changes are said to relate to an investigation currently underway into the social media statements of Australian doctor and political activist David Van Gend. Dr Van Gend is being investigated by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency for “discriminatory conduct” after retweeting material critical of the transgender lobby and same-sex marriage.

Saturday, August 18, 2018

It’s not an original thought, but with every amazing technological advance comes an unheard-of and very dangerous drawback. Smashing the atom gave us nuclear power and the atom bomb. The automobile gave us hitherto unimaginable mobility and tens of thousands of deaths on the road. The Pill gave women control over their fertility and led to birth rates so low that some countries are in danger of disappearing.

And the mobile phone? Where do we start? This week, with selfies. They give Millennials a buzz, but according to cosmetic surgeons, they also can lead to a psychological disorder which has been dubbed “Snapchat Dysmorphia”. Young women (mostly) are so used to altering their images with apps that they demand the same service from cosmetic surgeons.

“This is an alarming trend because those filtered selfies often present an unattainable look and are blurring the line of reality and fantasy for these patients,” report the authors of an article in JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery.

It would take a sharper mind than mine to define the problem, but our relationship with technology is problematic. We don’t foresee the problems and we can’t control our dependence. Since so much of contemporary bioethics revolves around the proper use of technology, this is something we always have to bear in mind.