From: gwr@receptor.lanl.gov (Graham W. Redgrave)
Subject: Re: spina bifida information needed, please!
Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory
Date: Wed, 26 Aug 1992 21:29:50 GMT

In article <16209@pitt.UUCP>, geb@dsl.pitt.edu (gordon e. banks) writes:
|> In article <1992Aug24.200815.22447@newshost.lanl.gov> gwr@hedonist-1.lanl.gov (Graham W. Redgrave) writes:
|> >
|> >I would defer to you (or any dr. I had come to trust) on points of fact,
|> >but I am curious as to your opinion about "netside manner".  As I said
|> >before, Mr. Lin was clearly concerned about the welfare of this child,
|> >and _because_of_that_, your initial response seemed brutal to me.  Again,
|> 
|> I had thought he was not a parent, but asking for someone else.  I also
|> had concern for the welfare of the child and its parents.
|> The rest of your posting (deleted) has a tone that concerns me greatly.
|> Perhaps Ken and I should stop posting to sci.med, as people
|> are taking us far too seriously and expecting far too much.

Your point here is well taken.  There is a difference between expecting a lot
and expecting too much; I plan on going to medical school as soon as possible,
so perhaps I place _more_ emphasis on what you say and how you say it, because
soon (hopefully ;-) I will be interacting with patients and making sometimes
painful diagnoses.   

|> Witness the taking Ken to task for posting something that
|> might be out of date and changed since he went to medical
|> school.

I thought this was wrong, too.  Clearly you or Ken would research a case
of yours to find out what the current thinking is, but again, I was concerned
about manner, not content.  Still, I will concede an over zealousness on my
part.
  
|> Just what obligations do you people think we owe you anyhow?
|> I don't want you to trust me as much or more as your doctor.
|> Certainly I wouldn't have told the parents about what was done
|> in England or used the language and examples I used here.

This is something that I did not know but am happy to hear.
  
|> What you do with your own patients when you are
|> acting in a professional capacity is quite different from the
|> net.   On the net, I am not anyone's doctor, but provider of
|> as complete information on a subject as I can pull out of my
|> head at the time and put briefly in a message.  I hope that is
|> understood.

It is understood much better now, thanks.

  I really don't like the term "netside manner" since that
|> implies that somehow I am forming a doctor-patient relationship
|> over the net.  I want to avoid that at all costs.  I accept
|> no professional responsibility for the opinions I post whatever.
|> You may note that I do not post MD after my name or explicitly
|> make claims of being an expert in the field.  My posts are intended
|> solely for your educational value and act on them
|> at your own risk.  If you want professional advice, I'll be
|> happy to see you in my office.  

Fair enough.

|> 
|> I hope this doesn't offend you, but although I'm happy you
|> have trusted my posts, I just want to make sure you don't
|> take them more seriously than you should.

No offense taken (I hope I communicate clearly enough to make any offense
I have taken quite clear };-).

-- 
Graham Redgrave    |    --  I don't speak for the government, 
gwr@life.lanl.gov  |        but I wish the government would speak for me ...  --