OMEGA (Oxford M.E. Group for Action) AGM - Guest speaker Caroline Struthers 14 March 2020

I’m not sure about a blog post, a PDF is probably the easiest.
I can help with a video though. If it was recorded, I could try add your slides If someone sends it to me.

 

There was a problem with the sound (and my delivery!) on the first few slides so I re-recorded the sound for those - I can send if you give me your email - too big to upload here. But in the short term I will add my notes to the powerpoint and make a pdf

 

Cool. Will do.

 

Here's the pdf with notes to be going on with

 

Really interesting. Thank you Caroline, it's so important to document everything. I still constantly learn new details about things that happened years ago and, without fail, they always make things look even worse. Frankly it isn't just Cochrane that looks awful, it's clear that the entire concept of evidence-based medicine has been corrupted in practice to the point of being unable to fulfill any of its actual aims.

The flaws appear to be similar to failures in politics. Constitutions, laws, regulations, doctrines, precedent, tradition, all are general principles that cannot withstand corruption from within or chaos in execution. No system can withstand perverse incentives or aimless leadership. This is especially important when excuses given to work around rules are ambiguous, open to interpretation. Literally everything that touches psychology is open to interpretation, so the problem manifests itself at all scales and steps in the process.

It frankly also points to one of the most important principles in life, one that transcends empires and applies in all times and occasion: always look for the helpers, they are the ones that move us forward and give life meaning, especially against self-interests looking to fill their plate at all costs. Thank you for helping!

Also, LOL:

The owl goes woo, woo.

 

Speaking of owls, I often think of this cartoon and how it relates to our nightmare.