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LCNY's avatar

The next level discussion? To find a way to broadly and clearly inform patients- aka consumers of medicine - that their physicians work in a "professional" environment which silences dissent - esp.when it might impact billable services. I cannot count the number of people who have dismissed any thoughtful analysis shared, regarding even relatively minor disagreements about standard practice, with an exasperated huff : "No way! if THAT were true, then you'd hear the real doctors saying it - not just the conspiracy theorists!" For example- the average consumer over 75 has never experienced Twitter mobs or "cancelling" from the academy or funding and has no idea what tools are used for total career annihilation. They can't conceive of the AMA and local licensing boards as captured political action committees. They have no idea that the doc accepting their gold-plated retirement benefits supplements to Medicare works for a corporate hierarchy which dictates standards of care which are all about malpractice premiums. They believe their best-that-money-can-buy docs are free to speak - and so anyone who is out of line must not be a "good doctor." If we don't have educated consumers who can hold the sellers of services accountable, we're all at the (no) mercy of the corporate executives who run these large hospitals and medical groups. And we know their jobs are all about reducing costs and maximizing revenue streams - e.g. - expanding the market for plausible repeated screenings - like any good CEO. As Mr. Incredible learns, Insuracare is all about the shareholder's profits, never the client's needs. But never let the client know!

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Glory's avatar

Relative risk reduction vs. absolute risk reduction. Seems like all trials promoted by Big Pharma and Big Medicine obscure this distinction. As I recall, a certain novel gene therapy directed at a viral pandemic has the same issue. RRR at 95% or better! ARR less than 1%.

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