Episode 160: Risking the Loss of Your Medical License for Allegations of Misinformation with Dr. Meg Edison

If there is one thing that seems obvious throughout the pandemic, public discourse on just about everything seems to have broken our brains. We are incapable of having discussions without vitriol and there appears to be a real desire to not simply win arguments but destroy our ideological enemies. This leads to all sorts of strange behavior like fracturing previously solid personal relationships between family members, friends, colleagues, and, in today's example, patients and their doctors. Going After Her Medical LicenseIt began with a surprising email in her gmail account in the fall of 2021 for Dr. Meg Edison. A man identified himself as an investigator for the Michigan State Medical Board and was following up on a patient complaint for 'misinformation.' After a google search to feel comfortable that the individual was an actual state employee investigator, Dr. Edison gave him a call to find out what the nature of the complaint was against her. It turns out that one of her long standing patients had lodged a complaint with the state board of medicine claiming that she was pushing misinformation at their child's last visit. The claim consisted of the 3 allegations: That cloth masks were not a very effective barrier for protection from infection by COVID and they would do better to wear a higher quality mask, That it was unlikely that the FDA would approve a pediatric vaccine, and That even 70% of the deer in Michigan have been infected with COVID as shown by serology testing. As one can see, all those statements are correct and were true by government authorities even back in the fall of 2021. Fortunately, the story has a happy ending and the Board of Medicine found the complaint to lack merit and was summarily dismissed without any action taken against Dr. Edison. How Organized Medicine Can Protect DoctorsOrganized medicine can be an extremely challenging and aggravating landscape for physicians to navigate sometimes. However, when it comes to standing up for doctors, there aren't many organizations that will do it. And when it comes to taking on the licensing boards, state regulatory bodies, or hospitals the only groups that have doctors' backs are the professional groups. Dr. Edison made the point that it is important to find your niche in organized medicine and run with it to help foster relationships with other physicians and learn more about the state of medicine and different ways to practice.