I am happy to report that our Foundation website is now up. We are accepting members and plan to use this tool to hold the press accountable. Visit us at HelixGene. Why is this an integral part of the Sherpa Plan? Because physicians are too busy to get their genomic education from anywhere other than the TV or Newspapers or Newsweek.
Most physicians underestimate the utility of genomics. Most probably never learned about it in medical school. How can we deliver adequate education through mass media??? By vetting it and holding it to medical education standards. Sounds pretty harsh huh?
These times call for harsh measures. Plain and Simple.
From the Foundation's Site
HelixGene was scrambled over the weekend of September 19th 2008 as an emergency forum of genomic medical experts to address significant medical misinformation in the New York Times regarding the G2019S mutation of the LRRK2 gene.
HelixGene's still under construction, but the relevant information regarding this emergency has been published:
See
I hope this first issue spurs you to action. It certainly has done that with us!
Happy Holidays!
-Steve
4 comments:
Excellent, brilliant and shiny. Grading news-reports on a scientific basis is long overdue and something I have wanted to accomplish myself for some time. Congrats on setting this up. You mention signing up, ... if I can I would love to, ...but how ?
Why not just pay a person a small hourly salary (like 5-10 hours a week...1-2 hour a day) to send you newspaper links (or Web postings on Internet based websites) about the topics you made in this posting? A person doesn't need an advanged degree to perform Internet searches for you. This would help the effiency of your plan.
Would you be willing to pay a person $50 a week to search the Internet for you? If so, I would be willing to help out.
I think this quote shows how misinformed the general public is about consumer genetic testing: "“I was talking to my brother about this very thing. I told him, ‘Is your life worth $1000?’ Now that might not be something a doctor can say, but that’s my opinion. I think people have to look at it in perspective. They wouldn’t even blink at spending that much on a big-screen TV. And they’ll even put it on a credit card and pay for it over 30 years. So what’s the priority? I don’t look at the test as spending money. The deCODEme test is an investment in yourself.”"
@anonymous,
Great point about that quote!
-Steve
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