CardioExchange Archive

CardioExchange, an NEJM practice community for medical professionals dedicated to improving cardiac patient care, was active from 2009 to 2015. CardioExchange fostered discussion between clinicians from across the globe.

November 4th, 2010

CardioExchange and the Ethos of Community

We recently posted a blog that described the experience of a Fellow whose assessment of a patient and the need for a test was not seemingly given the fullest attention by the attending physician. Many of us remember such experiences in our training and the sense that there were issues beyond the patient that were influencing the decisions. We posted the blog to bring up issues of test ordering and the experience of Fellowship.

The blog was written from the viewpoint of the Fellow and our belief was that the views represented are common to many Fellows in many programs and are emblematic of the powerlessness that many Fellows feel in the course of their clinical training. What we did not intend was for the piece to implicate a program or an individual, but in retrospect it is clear that some readers might conclude — rightly or wrongly — that they could identify the physicians in the vignette. Neither the author nor the editors of CardioExchange meant to have the blog be personal in that way: The points were meant to generalize an experience told from one person’s perspective. The ultimate responsibility here rests with the editorial team, not the author.

We will be more vigilant in ensuring that we adhere to our aspiration of being a venue for the debate of ideas. We seek the high ground. We will continue to tackle challenging and controversial issues — but seek to do so with respect and to avoid any appearance of targeting individuals. In a fast moving and informal community, we must be equal to the task of ensuring that we will have the highest-quality content.

Categories: General


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