David Southall suggests that the reason the General Medical Council struck off
Sir Roy Meadow was a perceived need to redress previous failures of regulation
("Justice for a hero of hidden errors", February 24). He rightly says the GMC
should be ashamed.
Meadow's use of covert surveillance to demonstrate a particular form of child
abuse led to his expertise in child protection cases and "shaken baby syndrome"
convictions, four of which were overturned. No convictions were overturned in
88 other cases reviewed. Meadow's work therefore saved the lives of
children.
A good historical example of the power of the medical establishment to suppress
progress on issues of professional shame is that of Ignaz Semmelweiss. He
recognised that puerperal sepsis was caused by a failure to wash hands before
internal examination of a woman. He had to persuade others of his case before
later work showed conclusively that infections were caused by germs. He met
resistance and a medical journal urged an end to his chlorine treatment.
Semmelweiss denounced respected obstetric teachers as murderers. He suffered a
mental breakdown and was committed to an asylum, where he died.
It is not surprising that we take an anti-rational approach to dealing with
illness. We want a quick, cheap, painless and complete cure. We need more
doctors such as Meadow who will face up to medical deceptions.
D. B. Double Norfolk and Waveney Mental Health Partnership
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