Paul D. Pion, DVM, DACVIM (Cardiology), co-founder, VIN
Last month, I reminded you about the Ten Commandments of VIN that codify VIN’s moral compass and introduced the corollary, a VINner’s Oath that codifies a form of the golden rule for (y)our VIN community.
Today, I’ll expand on the first item in the VINner’s Oath.
1 I will not violate the confidentiality of the VIN Community. I will email feedback@vin.com to ask permission before reproducing or sharing VIN community content with anyone. If I obtain permission to share content, I will make sure the content is fully anonymized.
At the bottom of every message board discussion, there are reminders of our promises to each other. The first addresses this promise that all VINners make to each other.
“Use of VIN Message Board Discussions is limited to personal reference by VIN members. No portion of any VIN Message Board Discussion may be copied or distributed without the express permission of VIN.”
But, wait a minute. We use VIN to find and share information we use to educate ourselves, our colleagues, staff, and clients. What do you mean I can’t share what I find?
Agreed. The context, facts, and content are shared amongst us for those purposes and more. This commitment in the VINners’ Oath relates primarily to respecting fellow VINners’ privacy and how to use and share what you learn on VIN without violating that trust and confidentiality.
So, let’s look at some examples:
- I found a great abstract or journal article I want to share with my non-VIN colleagues or print out for a client. No problem. This is not VIN community (between colleagues) information. There are no specific VINner’s identification associated with it. So, as long as you provide the content and not access to VIN to others, that is appropriate.
- I found a great discussion about a case or issue that I want to share with my non-VIN colleagues or print out for a client. Caution! Sharing the information and context with a colleague is probably appropriate, but before you share the text, be sure you’ve removed the names of any VINners if you don’t have permission to do so. This goes ten-fold for clients. Do not share colleague identification with any client without their permission. Here are some easy ways to avoid falling into trouble in this scenario:
- Don’t allow your staff to read VIN message boards
- Don’t transfer responses from the VIN Message boards into your medical records.
- Instead, summarize the information in your own words.
- Save the link for your reference in your MyStuff rather than in your records.
- Most importantly, redact the names of colleagues in any communications with clients or in the records.
- Someone I know is being talked about or impacted by what I’ve read on the VIN message boards. Caution! Choosing between personal loyalty and respecting VIN community ethics/rules might seem difficult. Not really. None of us should feel restricted from discussing the context (not the specifics and not the names) of what we learn anywhere with our friends and colleagues as long as we do so without betraying the trust of a colleague. When you post you should keep this in mind. If what you post will put others in a position of knowing something you expect them to not share, ask to post anonymously and leave out details that will be traceable to you.
- A VINner in my area has posted about business or clinical practices that upset/offend me. I feel it’s my duty to warn other colleagues or clients in the area. Stop! Sharing message board information knowing that doing so will harm another VINner is unforgivable. Malicious sharing of VIN information hasn’t happened more than a few times, and in each case, it has been fully investigated and the offender, when identified, has been removed from the VIN community.
Our profession is small and close-knit. Message Board information shared with a non-VIN colleague can quickly circle back to adversely impact the original poster’s career, business, or personal life. VINners post some of their most troubling and private dilemmas on VIN, hoping for the support and wisdom of colleagues. They deserve not to suffer for that trust.
Basically, if you pause before sharing information (or posting) and ask, “If this were my post or the post of a friend or I was responsible for the content, how would I want myself or my friend to be treated?” What you do should then be common sense. And if you are unsure, ask. Email Feedback@vin.com or Paul@vin.com and we’ll help you. Let’s have that discussion here: Discussion
A final word about thinking before you post:
Recognizing that amongst 58,000 colleagues on VIN, there is going to be unequal interpretation and adherence to this promise we make to each other, here is some wise advice from my father, “If you don’t want something to be known by others, don’t tell anyone.” In a restaurant: you never know who’s sitting at the next table; if you post sensitive information on VIN, there is no way to guarantee that all colleagues will respect your privacy. If what you post will put others in a position of knowing something you expect them to not share, ask to post anonymously and leave out details that will be traceable to you.
Given the number of posts and colleagues, the VIN Community succeeds remarkably well as a confidential and secure place for all VINners. However, all VINners need to participate in keeping the trust and confidentiality of the VIN Community.