Ian Trimble <[log in to unmask]> writes
>DECEMBER REVIEW OF THE GP-UK LIST (01/12/98)
>** A POLITE REQUEST **
>List traffic has tailed off a little this month
"tailed off" ?
By your own statistics it has almost halved (2050 to 1196)
So fewer messages means improved quality?
(aha, I see - like PACT data?)
May I make a couple of contentious comments?
1. * GP-UK encourages a (male) chauvenistic bias *
In the last 2 weeks there have been 56 male contributors to 5 female.
Only one of those women has made more than one posting.
Female GPs account for 30% of all doctors in UK general practice.
GP-UK is not therefore representative (by it's postings) of UK general
practice.
Since it is an open list it has the potential for both attracting and
keeping a membership that is representative of general practice.
Whilst I accept that membership is not reflected in postings, I propose
that *active membership* is a useful measure.
2. * this disequilibrium is maintained in part by the parochial slant of
the topics towards computing *
In the last 2 weeks the subject headings may be grouped:
computing - 29
PCG - 12
Clinical - 14
Practice management - 4
Non-medical - 2
By any standards this constitutes an insular bias.
I enjoy computers as much as the rest of you, but new members might be
forgiven for thinking they had stumbled upon PC-UK rather than a
"Membership (which) includes academics, educational tutors,
ordinary general practitioners, practice nurses, pharmacists, GP
computer suppliers and NHS managers."
>GP-UK facilitates discussion on new ideas
Ah, yes, but retains a donnish character to deter the visionary?
Which leads to my third contentious point (good things always come in
threes):
3. *GP-UK is unfriendly to newcomers*
In the year that I have been around there are few new active
contributors.
We forget that it is sometimes difficult to join in a pre-existing
conversation, and to use the post-grad centre or pub analogy, I don't
see many of us moving our chairs to allow more to squeeze into the
circle.
So some new members have jumped in with what we the provincial, have
deemed unworthy comments. Ok, so one does not go into a group chatting
and immediately critisize ... or does one?
If you think to many real situations "where two or three are gathered
together" then is that not exactly what a newcomer has to do to be
heard? Does not the challenge provide a valid viewpoint from which to
progress?
And, being the devil's advocate myself, I leave these thoughts with you
while I go and paint my nails (what the male fraternity believe is what
female GPs do) ....
--
Katie
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