About Providing Medical Advice on this Board

[sharky]

Originally Posted by mschauer

Regardless of how much more "seasoned" than others someone believes themselves to be, there is always the possibility that someone else possesses information that can be helpful to a poster. I don't think it is surprising that such a person would choose to communicate the information thru PMs if they have been made to feel unwelcome in the forums.

Personally I think the best way to learn is to gather information from as many sources as possible. The internet is a big place. There are a lot of people out there that constitute a huge knowledge base and of which the members of these forums only represent a tiny subset. It doesn't make sense to me to assume that any individual, whether they are a member of these forums or not, possesses a monopoly on useful information.

As Anne has made clear, none of us is qualified to give medical advice. All any of us is doing is relating personal experiences and sharing information. How "seasoned" does someone need to be to do that?

If the info has caused an issue on the board and thus "made someone uncomfortable" then a PM is IMHO not a viable option as they to should also conform to the rules of the forum( MODS correct if this is wrong)...

sharing accurate and validated info is often a great thing ... of course validated info in nutrition changes and to date no one actually knows all the answers for every cat...

 

[mschauer]

Originally Posted by sharky

If the info has caused an issue on the board and thus "made someone uncomfortable" then a PM is IMHO not a viable option as they to should also conform to the rules of the forum( MODS correct if this is wrong)...

If what you mean to say is that if someone has violated forum rules and then continues the violation via PMs I guess I would agree that is a no-no although I have no idea what that has to do with my post???

 

[gayef]

Originally Posted by mschauer

Regardless of how much more "seasoned" than others someone believes themselves to be, there is always the possibility that someone else possesses information that can be helpful to a poster. I don't think it is surprising that such a person would choose to communicate the information thru PMs if they have been made to feel unwelcome in the forums.

Originally Posted by sharky

If the info has caused an issue on the board and thus "made someone uncomfortable" then a PM is IMHO not a viable option as they to should also conform to the rules of the forum( MODS correct if this is wrong)...

Originally Posted by mschauer

If what you mean to say is that if someone has violated forum rules and then continues the violation via PMs I guess I would agree that is a no-no although I have no idea what that has to do with my post???

I am stepping in here to clarify since I feel this thread is turning in a debate and that is not appropriate for this forum.

Members here, unless they can satisfactorily prove their certification as a DVM, are not qualified to dispense medical advice, dosage information, types of medications that can be used, etc., in the open Forums OR in private messages - if a few have been made to feel uncomfortable or unwelcomed in the open Forums, then it is because of their own actions which can be the result of being contrary to TCS Rules for Posting.

Personal experiences with illnesses and treatments may be shared so long as it is stated that the BEST advice is always received from one's own trusted veterinarian.

 

[yosemite]

Actually I think Anne probably posted this to just remind everyone of what is expected of all of us, not necessarily for us to debate the issue.

 

[mschauer]

Originally Posted by gayef

Iif a few have been made to feel uncomfortable or unwelcomed in the open Forums, then it is because of their own actions which can be the result of being contrary to TCS Rules for Posting.

I don't know how you can possibly think you know all the reasons that people may have been made to feel uncomfortable with posting in the forums. I can guarantee you it does not always have anything whatsoever to do with violating forums rules.

 

[tuxedokitties]

Hi Anne!

I'll watch out for this...I think if I offer advice I try to remember to preface it with "ask your vet about...". But I don't remember if I've done this every time, so I'll be extra careful.

This site is a treasure trove of information about cats and I hope it remains so for a long time. The Cat Site is where I first learned the value of feeding canned over dry, and I'm happy to say that one bit of knowledge has been a huge benefit to my pets. If I read anything interesting here I ask my vet about it, and I've found a few bits of advice here to try things that my vet has approved that have turned out to be extremely helpful to my cats. I love having access to this wide base of member knowledge. As long as we're all careful about how we say things, I'm sure it will continue to thrive.

 

[blaise]

First, I want to thank Anne for leaving this thread open for questions, clarifications and discussion, and not simply locking it up in the form of a sticky for reference purposes.

Very few modern managers have the courage to actually meet with their customers in an open setting, listen to their feedback, and respond. Fewer again have the courage to include middle-managers in such a process. For me, this represents forward thinking, and I'm greatful to see it here at TCS. I firmly believe that such a open dialogue has the potential to enhance this site - certainly it may well make it unique...I am not aware of another site where the open, honest processing of issues inclusive of the entire community has occurred.

To the moderators who are participating, I would say that I applaud your courage, because I believe that such a process is intrinsically more difficult, challenging and even threatening for you. As mods in forums these days, you are protected from criticism by forum rules...but in a discussion such as this, you surely must feel (at least) a little vulnerable. That is difficult to manage. Hats off to you!

Debate/discussion....tomaaato/tomato...or more profound? I think if it's respectful and "on-topic", it can be a very useful tool, allowing us to hear and understand each others' points of view. However we might view back-and-forths, if this process is to be a positive experience, we all need to let our defenses down and ensure we are hearing what each other is saying.

Originally Posted by kittymonsters

...Mods, please tell me that you PM posters when such an error is made. I would hate to think I have posted something that could be responsible for getting Anne sued and TCS shut down.

I don't think that question was completely covered off, and I, like kittymonsters, would like to know if something I said unintentionally crossed the line. This needs to be a learning process for us all and, often the learning will come from making mistakes. I know that workload prevents Mods from always informing us when posts require adjustment but, because of the importance of the issue, I'm hoping this could be implimented.

 

[rosiemac]

Originally Posted by BLAISE

To the moderators who are participating.... in a discussion such as this, you surely must feel (at least) a little vulnerable. That is difficult to manage.

No, not really, weve had far worse

 

[gayef]

This thread is clearly not a debate. It is a clarification of the Rules For Posting here at TCS. Any and all issues with these rules can be taken up with the owner.

Due to the argumentative tone this thread has taken on, we are now forced to lock it.

 

[Anne]

Originally Posted by BLAISE

First, I want to thank Anne for leaving this thread open for questions, clarifications and discussion, and not simply locking it up in the form of a sticky for reference purposes.

Questions and requests for clarification are welcome. I'm afraid that's the scope of the discussion we can allow and these rules are not open for debate

In reply to questions raised on this thread:

1. I ask respectfully, in the name of the cats, that we all use the same precautions and qualifications in PM too. That said, we do not monitor private messages on TCS. Private messages remain private (unless we should ever be instructed by some "higher forces" to provide some information, maybe with a court order or something). You will not be issued any warnings or infractions over PM's, even if those are reported (and sometimes we do get such reports).

2. As for violations of our guidelines in posts: as Fran mentioned above, our mods try to monitor posts, but we can't be everywhere all the time. Reports by our members are helpful in that regard. When we do come across something that's out of line, we will usually edit the thread and notify the member in question, sometimes along with an official warning or infraction (that gets recorded in the infractions system). Please note that these measures are rarely the decision of a single mod. Almost always they follow a discussion among the mods and myself. Also, we never discuss interactions between a mod and a member with other members and certainly do not report infractions/warnings to other members.

Hope this helps to clarify some things

Thank you all for cooperating. I really do appreciate the fruitful discussions here in the H&N forum and elsewhere on TCS. I know for a fact that we've helped hundreds, if not thousands of cats, here along the years. Let's keep up this great tradition together, and along the guidelines expressed in this thread and in our rules.

Thank you!