This could all go a bit wrong, but I would like to talk a little bit about medics and professionalism and how we treat one another on social media. Because for all of the outrage about bikinis, we must remember that there ARE behaviours we must all avoid...

For context, a doctor has written a book. This happens quite frequently, and often other medics don’t like it. There are a few reasons. Some see book writing as profiteering. Some think that authoring a book is a statement of expertise, and so

they find it a bit if (for example) a doctor writes a (for example) nutrition book without specific nutritional qualifications, or if a junior doctor writes a book that they feel should only be written by someone who has completed their training. Valid concerns.

Some doctors feel that books are self serving/profiteering and that doctors shouldn’t write them, and some people just don’t like some people and it doesn’t matter if they write a book or save a puppy from a fire, they just won’t like it.

I think that what’s important here is recognising they difference between valid debate and criticism, which is not unreasonable in the public sphere, and being mean to people because you don’t like them, which is unreasonable in all spheres.

Now don’t get me wrong, I think it’s totally reasonable not to like people. I don’t like A LOT of people. But not liking someone therefore ignoring/not following/blocking them is totally fine, whereas wearing an I don’t like someone sandwich board is not.

And that’s where it encroaches into the bullying department- and we all agree that none of us want any part of this, but it’s easy to let our biases convince us we are just being critical. When in fact sometimes we are just being arseholes.

I think what I’m saying is that having an opinion is always fine, but it’s what you do with that opinion that means the difference between right and wrong THE END.