Science or Surgery- an unnecessary debate!

I recently encountered a raging controversy on the semantics of a dentist's degree. Simply put, the question was whether a 'master of science' degree should be considered inferior to a 'master of dental surgery'. To explain the background, one must understand that in the USA, a master of science is designated with the acronym MS, whereas in India ( and all commonwealth countries) the same is designated as MSc. For the record I might add that MS in India generally refers to Master of Surgery and by logic the MDS is called a Master of Dental Surgery. The case in question refers to a gentleman with  MS in Orthodontics ( as it is referred to in the USA) is today being challenged by one of his colleagues because he has a 'science' degree and not a 'surgery' degree and therefore ineligible to call himself an Orthodontist. Orthodontics, strictly speaking, is not a surgical persuasion. It is an important specialty that deals with non surgical correction of dental and facial deformities. The surgical corrections are done by another specialty. Notwithstanding any of these, in India they are all designated as Master of Dental Surgery. For instance Oral Medicine, Preventive Dentistry and Oral pathology (which are all obviously non surgical specialties) are also designated as MDS. It is just a nomenclature to which we have not appended much thought. It certainly does not matter too! All specialties are important.
To me, the whole controversy about the expansion of a degree ( MS or Msc) appears  puerile and immature because the course content and structure of the syllabus are exactly the same and the regulatory body in India (DCI) has clearly recognized the MS from the particular US University as being equivalent to the MDS. So you can see that the bone of contention is in the expansion of the acronym after the dentist's name!
Science is perhaps the greatest persuasion in human endeavor and surgery is just a part of this great ocean of collective knowledge. Then why do we consider science to be somehow inferior to surgery. It is unfortunately an uninformed world view that makes people clamor after a title that incorporates the word 'surgeon', not realizing how limiting that term can be. I am a Maxillofacial surgeon (a surgical specialty of dentistry) but I would feel more pampered to be called a scientist rather than a surgeon. This is because it would be an acknowledgement that my professional abilities extend beyond the realm of purely using a knife to cure people. In fact until the last century, surgeons were looked down upon because they achieved much less in health care than the other health professionals. In fact even today the surgeons in the UK are called 'Mr' and not 'Dr'. Have you ever wondered why the AIIMS is called the All India Institute of Medical Sciences. Does the word ‘science’ seem inferior for this institute? The same applies to NIMHANS and several other national institutes of higher medical training.
Surgery is just a small aspect of the higher calling of science which encompasses a greater understanding and application of knowledge. We must remember that to become a surgeon, one must first embrace science. Surgery is just minuscule arm of the broader subject of science.

The many headed hydra called 'anonymity' !

Many of you must have heard of the arrest and incarceration of a young man in Chennai, who works for a well known dentist and oral surgeon. He was arrested for illegal use of cyber space under anonymity, to spread canards and lies about several honorable professionals. His employer, a famous dentist and accused number two in the FIR was given anticipatory bail after it was dismissed on a previous occasion. The long arm of the law has finally caught up with the cowardly crime of anonymous assault on the reputations of respected professionals. Having been the subject of these cowardly mails by anonymous persons, I am supposed to feel happy. Ironically, I feel no joy. Not even hate. There is however a pall of sadness that engulfs me. I feel sorry for people who could have used their publicity building abilities to do a great service for humanity. Instead they chose to use their resources to disseminate hate, lies, vulgarity and petty schisms in the hope of destroying the reputation of others. Letters under assumed names and anonymous blogs have been created to defame people. Technology has been twisted on its head to perpetuate hate and misdemeanor. Only a detailed investigation will bring out the whole conspiracy and the people involved. The authors of such venality may well find themselves wallowing in their own machinations. It is a lesson for all of us. The trail has not ended and many more are likely to feel the fall. I am also aware that my complaint to the authorities may make me vulnerable to retribution. These are politically powerful people- remember!

Dissent and righteousness are noble persuasions when one can stand up and be counted for his/her views. However fallacious rumour mongering and puerile lies under the veil of anonymity is a narrative of the deep seated evils that plague human personality. Half truths are disingenuous attempts to give life to a lie. Here I need to quote Criss Jami ( American philosopher and lyrical poet) who said “Just because something isn't a lie does not mean that it isn't deceptive. A liar knows that he is a liar, but one who speaks mere portions of truth in order to deceive is a craftsman of destruction.” I can believe that!

 For the last couple of years I have waited patiently to see the perpetrators of these lies, about me and several others, to be exposed. I even thought I would be happy to see the culprit being apprehended. But when it finally happened I feel remorse and revulsion. The remorse is for the people who trusted the person- his family, his friends and the professionals who work with him. The revulsion is reserved for the person himself and those who colluded with him in systematic character assassination. Choosing to defame and indulge in anonymous character assassination is a reflection of a particularly dark personality. The singular feature of such persons is cowardice. If folks do not have the courage to stand up and speak, they should remain silent. It is a much more virtuous option.

Most importantly, we must all learn to shun anonymity when we see it. Anonymous letters belong to the waste basket (in modern times to the trash folder). I have been surprised by friends of mine who actually sought my clarification about absurd allegations. If indeed there was any truth, why would anybody want to be anonymous in revealing the same?  We cannot ignore their crime. But we must learn to ignore their scurrilous message. I cannot help quoting Criss Jami again “The only thing more frustrating than slanderers is those foolish enough to listen to them.”

Peace!

George Paul