4 ms·

Dr. Andrew Wakefield should be in prison for fraud. Why isn't he?

by sambeau 16y ago

Alex3917 16y ago
"Dr. Andrew Wakefield should be in prison for fraud. Why isn't he?" Probably for the same reason Saddam didn't get a real trial. In addition to having dozens of high-profile collaborators, including the heads of several medical schools, the kinds of practices he engaged in aren't even that unusual for medical studies. Even if Wakefield could be convicted of criminal wrongdoing, which may well be possible, there is no one in pharma or the medical world who benefits from a highly-publicized show trial. What's actually more interesting that the Bill Gates thing is the fact that Salon.com just retracted their 2005 RFK, Jr. article because it was apparently finally debunked in Seth Mnookin's new book: http://www.amazon.com/Panic-Virus-Story-Medicine-Science/dp/1439158649/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1296922112&sr=8-1 http://www.amazon.com/Panic-Virus-Story-Medicine-Science/dp/...
- jackfoxy 16y ago
  More on the retraction of the Salon.com article http://sethmnookin.com/2011/01/17/salon-retracts-deadly-immunity-rfk-jr-keep-it-on-his-site-as-does-dr-jay/ http://sethmnookin.com/2011/01/17/salon-retracts-deadly-immu...
random42 16y ago
< pedantic > Wakefield was struck off the Medical Register in May 2010, and cannot practise medicine in the UK </pedantic > (Genuine query )Should he still be addressed as Dr.?
- tel 16y ago
  Typically, you're eligible to use that title after receiving the degree. I know a number of non-practicing people who have degrees and sometimes (rarely, really) use the Dr. It's still a term of respect for completing a demanding program. Of course, with Wakefield it's difficult to still muster such respect.
- carussell 16y ago
  Here's a suggestion: go the route of the Wikipedia manual of style and drop all honorifics. "Wakefield" suffices, as does "Salk".
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
- rwmj 16y ago
  You might want to read the actual findings: http://www.gmc-uk.org/Wakefield_SPM_and_SANCTION.pdf_32595267.pdf http://www.gmc-uk.org/Wakefield_SPM_and_SANCTION.pdf_3259526... Amongst other things: found guilty of serious professional misconduct; diverted £25,000 of lab budget without telling his superiors where it was going; did invasive procedures on children when (a) his contract at the hospital explicitly said he could not treat patients, and (b) he was not trained for pediatrics. It doesn't however mention the "fraud" word (it calls him "dishonest" and "irresponsible" instead), but this is hardly the behaviour of a reputable scientist.

Dr. Andrew Wakefield should be in prison for fraud. Why isn't he?

by sambeau 16y ago

Dr. Andrew Wakefield should be in prison for fraud. Why isn't he?

"Dr. Andrew Wakefield should be in prison for fraud. Why isn't he?" Probably for the same reason Saddam didn't get a real trial. In addition to having dozens of high-profile collaborators, including the heads of several medical schools, the kinds of practices he engaged in aren't even that unusual for medical studies. Even if Wakefield could be convicted of criminal wrongdoing, which may well be possible, there is no one in pharma or the medical world who benefits from a highly-publicized show trial. What's actually more interesting that the Bill Gates thing is the fact that Salon.com just retracted their 2005 RFK, Jr. article because it was apparently finally debunked in Seth Mnookin's new book: http://www.amazon.com/Panic-Virus-Story-Medicine-Science/dp/1439158649/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1296922112&sr=8-1 http://www.amazon.com/Panic-Virus-Story-Medicine-Science/dp/...

jackfoxy 16y ago
More on the retraction of the Salon.com article http://sethmnookin.com/2011/01/17/salon-retracts-deadly-immunity-rfk-jr-keep-it-on-his-site-as-does-dr-jay/ http://sethmnookin.com/2011/01/17/salon-retracts-deadly-immu...

random42 16y ago

< pedantic > Wakefield was struck off the Medical Register in May 2010, and cannot practise medicine in the UK </pedantic > (Genuine query )Should he still be addressed as Dr.?

tel 16y ago
Typically, you're eligible to use that title after receiving the degree. I know a number of non-practicing people who have degrees and sometimes (rarely, really) use the Dr. It's still a term of respect for completing a demanding program. Of course, with Wakefield it's difficult to still muster such respect.
carussell 16y ago
Here's a suggestion: go the route of the Wikipedia manual of style and drop all honorifics. "Wakefield" suffices, as does "Salk".

deleted 16y ago

[deleted]

rwmj 16y ago
You might want to read the actual findings: http://www.gmc-uk.org/Wakefield_SPM_and_SANCTION.pdf_32595267.pdf http://www.gmc-uk.org/Wakefield_SPM_and_SANCTION.pdf_3259526... Amongst other things: found guilty of serious professional misconduct; diverted £25,000 of lab budget without telling his superiors where it was going; did invasive procedures on children when (a) his contract at the hospital explicitly said he could not treat patients, and (b) he was not trained for pediatrics. It doesn't however mention the "fraud" word (it calls him "dishonest" and "irresponsible" instead), but this is hardly the behaviour of a reputable scientist.