On Wednesday 20 May 2009 10:00:14 pm Radhika, Y. wrote: > Doctors and luddites...i am wondering if those slow to adopt tech are also > old-school in other ways i.e prescriptive speeches and monologues and > uninterested in patient participation?
I think I can explain why doctors are Luddites or appear like Luddites or at least like stuffy fuddite-duddites. In allopathic medicine (or "western medicine") that I practice - being "Luddite" is built into the system. Nothing new can be done outside of wha is called "Evidence based medicine" . In other words any action taken by any doctor must be justifiable on the basis of available evidence. "Available evidence" in medicine is dependent on the infromation having been glened from a long drawn out validation process - ofteninvolveing "multicenter trials". In the US, in particular - doctors get their asses sued off if they do not stick to guidelines. All "new fangled stuff" is left to research centers. A classmate of mine in Florida was teling me that he needs to make 100,000 dollar a month to "berak even" and if he makes 100,001 dollars he has made a 1 dolar profit. It is easier to be a non-Luddite in India and a lot of innovative (as well as risky and dubious) stuff goes on in India. The good news is - there are "forward looking" non-Luddite doctors. The bad news is you will never know if they are doing untried unproven stuff on you. Taking notes on a tablet is hardly medicine. That is for junior doctors. Humph. shiv
