Saturday, September 13, 2008

Superblogging - was the game worth the candle?



I can't help wondering whether Black, Needham or Paice believe that suspending a junior doctor in training was worth the sacrifice of their Internet reputations.

The Internet that caused the crisis, Dr Scot Junior put a few choice if ill chosen words on a private medical forum, has meted out its own form of rough justice. Dr Scot Junior remains suspended and his career temporarily on hold. But Black, Needham and Paice have become fair game for medical bloggers everywhere and objects of ridicule for anyone with access to a search engine

Superblogging is a coordinated blogging attack from multiple sources, by people with a common interest, whose only recourse is the Internet. These people are Google's constituents, their millions of pennies have, in part, paid for the Internet revolution. Google at least, seems to be protecting the anonymous voices that made it rich.


Other bloggers who have written more eloquently on this subject include
http://www.nhsexposedblog.blogspot.com/
http://ward87.blogspot.com/
http://www.drrant.net/
and just for a laugh "Oh Carole" by the Reservoir Docs

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

One imagines that they thought they'd get away with it as they've probably done hundreds of times before in all sorts of nasty covert, oppressive ways.

I seriously hope that when Dr Scot J is restored to duty everyone doesn't just wander off back to blog obscurity. This is a real opportunity to reinforce and continue the revolution started by Remedy et al.

The old guard has been entirely complicit in constructing the mess that the NHS is in now and its toxic culture. Time to pension them off (with no access to private healthcare...).

Dr Liz Miller said...

Might "retire them off" be a better phrase? why put good money after bad.

I agree with you absolutely. Medical "leaders" are unelected apparatchiks of the worst order. These are people who are prepared to do anything to be promoted and to stay in office. The integrity of our profession has suffered as a result.

The rot goes to the top, and not just patients but doctors, juniors, the public have been betrayed by ten years of a government based on "Command and Control". A government who were prepared to pay any price to get into office.

I suspect that as this unravels, a lot more than a few medical bureaucrats will be exposed.