tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6193043695356712843.post5397303426868234286..comments2023-09-02T23:55:45.583+10:00Comments on Doctor Skeptic: Skeptic or cynic?Dr Skeptichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09376469049519802493noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6193043695356712843.post-59579816971740377672012-06-16T23:44:50.762+10:002012-06-16T23:44:50.762+10:00Excellent blog post - thanks for that. It does se...Excellent blog post - thanks for that. It does seem to fuel the flames of scientific bias as the culprit in unreliable data!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6193043695356712843.post-32384890813188674152012-06-15T14:53:44.644+10:002012-06-15T14:53:44.644+10:00Thanks cz,
Your view as a patient is interesting, ...Thanks cz,<br />Your view as a patient is interesting, as it is my opinion that the patients are part of the problem in that they share the biases of the medical profession. They want the treatment to work as much as the doctor does. This is great for the placebo effect, but can lead to a lot more disappointment than expected. <br />For more on the topic of the failure of research, readers should read my blog titled: Don't believe the hype, or the research:<br />http://doctorskeptic.blogspot.com.au/2012/06/dont-believe-hype-or-research.htmlDr Skeptichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09376469049519802493noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6193043695356712843.post-77069440018316771412012-06-15T04:14:54.329+10:002012-06-15T04:14:54.329+10:00Dr. S - you bring up such a good point: is it a s...Dr. S - you bring up such a good point: is it a slippery slope from being (wisely) skeptical to becoming a cranky cynic? <br /><br />But with all we hear and read almost daily about "good evidence that financial incentives lead to biased studies", how can one NOT slide down that slope? Consider that former NEJM editor Dr. Marcia Angell herself once wrote: <br /><br />"It is simply no longer possible to believe much of the clinical research that is published, or to rely on the judgment of trusted physicians or authoritative medical guidelines." ( http://ethicalnag.org/2009/11/09/nejm-editor/ )<br /><br />For patients like me, who would genuinely love to believe that what our physicians are reading about in prestigious medical journals is actually TRUE, this kind of insider's bombshell opinion of untrustworthy medical research (and those who profit financially to say what they're saying about it) is truly discouraging.<br /><br />To help slow down my own downward slide, I keep this quote (sorry, don't have the author's name anymore) taped inside my bathroom cupboard door: "Cynicism is what passes for insight among the mediocre". <br /><br />Or could that just be a motto-gone-viral courtesy of Big Pharma!? <br /><br />Ooops, was that my cynical voice out loud?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com