3 DECEMBER 2021 ausdoc . com . au
Kelly ’ s ‘ preposterous piffle ’ earns unwanted Bent Spoon
Antony Scholefield THE annual ‘ award ’ for the Australian who most egregiously spreads scientific misinformation has been handed to federal MP Craig Kelly for his repeated rants against COVID-19 vaccines .
The Bent Spoon is handed out by the Australian Skeptics society to “ the proponent of the most preposterous piece of pseudoscientific or paranormal piffle ”.
Mr Kelly was given the nod for “ shouting misinformation about COVID-19 and vaccinations for some time , offering dubious cures , conspiracy theories and an interesting way with statistics ”, the society said last month .
The MP for Hughes called the
AAP
Federal MP Craig Kelly .
vaccination rollout “ one giant medical experiment ” and claimed there was little evidence to show “ these novel experimental COVID-19 genetic vaccines ” prevented anyone from contracting , spreading or being hospitalised by the virus .
In October , he tweeted that GPs were “ making lots of money ” from vaccinations and were “ in it together ” with pharmaceutical companies .
With 62,000 Twitter followers , he responded to his Bent Spoon award by posting : “ A lefty loony ’ s skeptic is a thinking person ’ s independent thinker .”
His twitter account carries the title ‘ Keeping the Bastards Honest ’.
GP reunited with wife and son
FROM PAGE 1 tiny apartment . All my son saw was me , my wife and the beach from the balcony .
“ It wasn ’ t a punishment for me . It was a pleasure . The best time of my life .”
Both he and Digvija lost family in the pandemic , including his cousin ’ s wife , who died after delivering her first child .
And a close friend in Adelaide , who had mental health problems , died by suicide on the day his wife and child were due to return to Australia .
“ He was in the same boat as me ,” Dr Mukkamala says . “ But his wife has no answers for what happened , and his son will never meet his father .
“ Mental health issues are complex , but I do think the border closures and the separation were a factor in what happened .”
In the time since being reunited with his family , Dr Mukkamala has been studying for the RACGP fellowship exams .
One of the doctors caught up in the college ’ s home-based fellowship fiasco last year , he sat his final exam last month .
“ I love general practice ,” he says . “ It ’ s paediatrics to geriatrics , [ and ] there ’ s a lot more satisfaction in treating patients holistically , especially in rural towns , where everyone knows
Chloe Chomicki © 2021 ABC
‘ Quarantine was a pleasure , not a punishment .’
you and looks to you for advice .
“ It might not be a medical issue but a social issue . I couldn ’ t be happier .”
Dr Mukkamala acknowledges that times have been very challenging for frontline doctors — both on a professional and personal level .
But having witnessed what has happened elsewhere , he says Australia , despite the battles with anti-vaxxers and the lockdown sceptics , has come through . “ Australia is a beautiful country . We call it the land of milk and honey .”
Editor ’ s note
This is the final print edition of Australian Doctor for the year .
On behalf of the editorial staff , I would like to say thank you for all you have done over the past 12 months and wish you a safe , peaceful and happy holiday season .
You can still read the latest news on our website : ausdoc . com . au Paul Smith
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