Mythbusting Medicine
The general public’s understanding of pathology is still low – so perhaps it’s time to step up awareness initiatives
The Royal College of Pathologists recently surveyed over 2,000 adults in the United Kingdom to find out what they knew about pathology. What did they find? It’s a bit of a mixed bag. For instance, while over three-quarters of respondents knew that pathologists were responsible for analyzing blood samples, not even one in five knew that they diagnosed allergies or looked after hospitalized patients. Most were aware of fictional pathologists – but unfortunately, that meant that their understanding of pathology was largely limited to forensic science, a discipline in which less than 1 percent of pathologists specialize. The take-home message? That pathologists need to encourage better public awareness of the work they do, so that patients can fully understand the roles of every member of their healthcare teams.
Key findings of recent survey of the Royal College of Pathologists on public awareness of pathology.
- S Jayaram, “Fact or fiction? Royal College of Pathologists public survey finds mixed attitudes to pathology” (2016). Available at: bit.ly/2fv124I. Accessed November 12, 2016.
While obtaining degrees in biology from the University of Alberta and biochemistry from Penn State College of Medicine, I worked as a freelance science and medical writer. I was able to hone my skills in research, presentation and scientific writing by assembling grants and journal articles, speaking at international conferences, and consulting on topics ranging from medical education to comic book science. As much as I’ve enjoyed designing new bacteria and plausible superheroes, though, I’m more pleased than ever to be at Texere, using my writing and editing skills to create great content for a professional audience.
