Too many doctors have a God Complex
For physicians it’s even worse. If a doctor is found culpable for malpractice, a settlement will often be done with a non-disclosure clause, so the public will never know.
So, how does the public learn about the qualities of professionals? For physicans, we now have this site http://www.ratemds.com/, a site which allows people to publish anonymous comments about the quality of their health care. Because licensing standards suggest that all doctors and lawyers must be perfect, many doctors are up-in-arms about this site, especially the potential for abuse.
How does one "out" a quack doctor?
A doctor’s reputation is their greatest asset, and while it’s not fair to quash fair comment about medical treatment, it’s not fair to allow anonymous people to unfairly ruin a lifetime of hard work. WE must also consider the issue of business competition, especially among the “vanity” medical areas of plastic surgery and psychiatry, areas where a business competitor might use a tool like this http://www.ratemds.com/ to launch an illegal attack. (Tortuous interference with business relationships is a crime).
This article notes that the web site hides behind section 230, a DMCA clause which holds a web site harmless for what other people publish on the site.
I thought that it was interesting that this web site does not allow commentators to identify themselves!
Given that over 95% of complaints against medical doctors are unjustified, I could see where a site like this serves no legitimate purpose, other than as a vehicle for libel.
