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Jan 29, 2024

Insta-only doctors and their medical advice

 I switched from being a software developer to a product manager back in 2008. Except for writing SQL queries, I haven't done any coding in all these years. I don't have experience in engineering management either. Now imagine that I scream out loud on social media that engineers should always follow test-driven development and write detailed unit test cases. I give gyaan on TDD (make reels, Insta guides) picked up from various popular blogs and expert opinions, without understanding the ground realities. Is TDD needed for all teams? What is the priority of the team at this point - quality code or ship MVP faster? How would on-the-ground engineers and engineering managers react to such posts?


The same is happening in the medical field rampantly on social media. There are many Insta-only doctors (MBBS by qualification but not practicing for decades), giving advice such as "Drinking Diet Coke won't harm you unless you drink in gallons". Or calling traditional alternative streams of medicine pseudo-science without doing any research.


When we are used to eating packaged foods and wouldn't want to quit or reduce our consumption,

  • if we hear someone saying "Avoid packaged foods as much as possible", it makes us feel uncomfortable. It sounds like a piece of bad news that we don't want to hear.
  • if we hear a "medical doctor" saying "Eat packaged foods, don't fall for fear-mongering tactics", we feel reassured and happy. We wouldn't need to make any tough decisions to correct our lifestyle.


Many doctors who practice in the field usually end up working long hours, attending to emergencies, and treating outpatients without any breaks for hours.


These Insta-only doctors take the easy route. They not only give general gyaan gleaned from easily available resources but also give irresponsible advice without knowing the ground realities. Are we 100% sure that such advice is not being "funded" by vicious groups?


Please don't fall for such advice (that feels good to hear but not good for our health) even if they adichify karpooram or agarbathi.