So won't the real angry doc please stand up?

My disciple (may the Dark Side be with you) Distinguished Mediocrity got busted yesterday.

Once again it reinforces the fact that anonymity on the blogosphere is an illusion.

Over the past weeks I am privileged to have readers come visit and comment on this blog; I value your comments, because whether they agree with my opinions or question them, they give me perspective.

A few readers have asked or speculated about my place of practice. I am sorry I am unable to reveal that. In fact, I deliberately disguise my practice profile and jumble up my stories to make it hard to pinpoint my practice - events are not reproduced exactly but embellished, toned down, composited, or even made up. The doctor/s featured in the stories may not even be the same person. Hence the Disclaimer at the top of the page, you see.

The reason why I resort to such duplicity is partly due to the pledge that we all had to take when we registered with the Singapore Medical Council:

SMC PHYSICIANS PLEDGE

"I solemnly pledge to:

dedicate my life to the service of humanity;
give due respect and gratitude to my teachers;
practise my profession with conscience and dignity;
make the health of my patient my first consideration;
respect the secrets which are confided in me;
uphold the honour and noble traditions of the medical profession;
respect my colleagues as my professional brothers and sisters;
not allow the considerations of race, religion, nationality or socialstanding to intervene between my duty and my patient;
maintain due respect for human life;
use my medical knowledge in accordance with the laws of humanity;
comply with the provisions of the Ethical Code;
and constantly strive to add to my knowledge and skill.

I make these promises solemnly, freely and upon my honour."

The last bit is of course bollocks, since we were all forced to take the oath or take a hike. The fact that they make you state that it's pledged 'freely' tells you as much.

Truth be told I remember the Hippocratic Oath better than this pledge, but in any case I respect my patients' right to privacy.

So in the interest of patient-doctor confidentiality, I cannot reveal my real identity for that may in turn reveal the identities of the patient/s whose actions I based the stories on this blog upon.

As a further means to disguise my real identity, I have also tried to minimise on information about my personal life. Also, I started this blog to vent about some of the unhappy episodes in my years in the profession; certainly the stories on this blog are not representative of my entire practice. This means that angry doc may come across as a perpetually angry doctor with no personal life. If that's the case I think I've achieved the effect I'm after.

I hope you will enjoy reading the blog.

Thank you.