Shut Up and Take Your Medicine

Internet theorist Clay Shirky discussed the "Medical Justice" service as an example of the industry's attempt to "prevent Health 2.0 from happening"

Doctors who don't want their patients to complain about their services are signing up with a service called Medical Justice, which has developed a standardized waiver that patients are asked to sign, agreeing not to post online comments about the doctor. The company "advises doctors to have all patients sign the agreements," reports Lindsey Tanner. "If a new patient refuses, the doctor might suggest finding another doctor. ... Doctors are notified when a negative rating appears on a Web site, and, if the author's name is known, physicians can use the signed waivers to get the sites to remove offending opinion." Dana Blankenhorn writes that patients rights advocates are angry at the attempt to stifle patients' speech: "MyDocHub calls it an attack on First Amendment rights, while ePatients.Net calls it an 'almost comical attempt to hold back the tide.' Consumer advocates are also grumbling."

Comments

It is evident that bad doctors are trying to hide their poor patient service by hiring lawyers to stifle free speech. MyDocHub.com is right that they are trying to circumvent our First Amendment Rights.

The service should be adjusted more because it's still a good idea to let the world know if someone is a bad doctor