I get the impression that the concept of medical confidentiality is being diluted beyond redemption. Time was when professional ethics prohibited even limited exposure on the media. Reading The Times (November 23) I was rather shocked to notice one prominent surgeon actually naming patients on whom he had successfully operated. Such a practice would not be tolerated in most professional journals which, by definition, are limited to a rather limited audience of fellow professionals.

It should even be more strictly enforced in electronic or print media, which are open to the public.