Dark Days in the Medical Blogosphere

Kevin MD calls today Black Wednesday: A dark day for the medical blogosphere.  He's right.

Insightful, well-written medical blogs are falling victim to corporate paranoia and jealous co-workers.  At a time when transparency in healthcare is being touted by the industry as a positive and inevitable response to the public's desire for safer care, it is truly a shame that eloquent voices are being silenced. 

Barbados Butterfly, Fat Doctor, Flea, and NeoNatal Doc, have all ceased publication.  In a unique way each of them shared with us the joys and sorrows of bearing the title physician.  I've worked in healthcare, and specifically with physicians, for decades, but these and other medical bloggers help me see their world in a whole new light.

I wish each of them well and hope they find ways to share their important stories.

And speaking of dark days in the medical blogosphere, the author of one of my favorite nursing blogs, Kim McAllister (Emergiblog) experienced a family tragedy this week with the sudden death of her brother-in-law, also an ED nurse, in an automobile accident. 

Dark days indeed for our family of medical bloggers.  Let's do what we can to support and encourage one another.