Samantha Torrence – It is no secret that with all the information available and the multitudes of technologies and research facilities that keeping up with the latest medical breakthroughs can be difficult and even controversial. Doctors working with infectious diseases are no strangers to dealing with controversy espcially those with a vested interest in Lyme’s Disease. Dealing with pressure, controversy, and difficult patients is the status-quo for most doctors today. Is it too much to expect that doctors remain professional despite these pressures?
One doctor did not remain professional and publicly ridiculed a group of people who say they have Chronic Lyme’s Disease on the IDSA Facebook Page. His comments inspired so much ire that he has blocked contact from people on his own Facebook page. Brett Shepard M.D. works for St. Luke’s Infectious Disease Associates in Duluth, MN. and is probably regretting his online outburst. The IDSA did delete all of the comments, but not before many screen shots were taken.
After reading the commentary by Brett Shepard it is evident there is a long history that lead to him mocking Chronic Lyme patients. However, instead of attacking the patients perhaps he should be more proactive in addressing why he believes the way he does. As a doctor who works with infectious diseases he has information available to him that many others may not, still why the aversion to using prolonged antibiotic treatments? Has there been a study on patients who claim to have Chronic Lyme to determine if antibiotics do indeed work or if it is a placebo affect?
Brett Shepard is by no means the only doctor who has decided to combat the chronically ill and pain ridden patients who demand a better treatment. He is not the only one to mock them and the doctors that help them. Should these doctors who have taken to high school bullying tactics take a break from their job and gain some perspective?
yes .. aware of this so called care provider & he is just one of thousands with same ego tripping mentality .. as long as Big Pharma & they are in each other’s pockets .. this will be a long journey to get well from Lyme & it’s co infections .. shame!
I think what had alarmed at least one Facebook Lyme Disease support group was a post about how he said “I am on your side” I think some of us had gained some trust of him in the group and were more than shocked and plainly hurt by the seemingly two faced remarks on the IDSA page.
I think Brett’s biggest gripe with the LLMD’s was the fact that some of them gain personally from selling supplements, to which I agree a doctor should not gain financially from selling medicine or supplements in my opinion either, I also think it might be illegal? I was not aware this was the biggest gripe about LLMD’s at all though. This was news to me.
I was shocked to see these types of comments coming from a doctor. I figured he just had had enough of something he saw as wrong, but he took it out on the wrong people. I would have loved to gotten his reasoning and side of it for the article, but contacting him via facebook was out and I have personal aversions to calling someone’s place of business especially when they feel threatened. So if he does read this and wants to get his side out he is more than welcome. I really do feel bad for him, but there is no excuse when it comes to making ill patients feel even worse.
Take it from someone who has known him his whole life, the man will be condescending and malicious toward anyone he sees as beneath him, a threat to him, or is standing in the way of something he wants… including his wife:
http://missingpeace70.tripod.com/lying_liars_who_told_lies.jpg
I’ve never met a more bitter, nasty individual… a true waste of a superior intellect!