In a class-action complaint hailed as the first of its kind, approximately 60 physicians in Japan have accused Google Maps of ignoring vociferous assessments of their facilities.
The doctors are requesting 1. Google paid 4 million yen ( US$ 9,000 ) in total damages in a bid to hold the US tech titan accountable for its inaction in light of the reviews.
They sued the company on Thursday ( Apr 19 ), saying they are powerless to reply to, or refute, reputation-damaging reviews because of their obligation to patient confidentiality.
” People who post online may say something anonymously, even if it’s nothing but defamation or verbal mistreatment,” one of the participating physicians told reporters.
” It’s like I’m a punching case,” he said under privacy.
According to a plaintiff’s attorney, the situation at Tokyo District Court is reportedly the first class-action lawsuit to be filed in Japan in response to negative net opinions.
It’s become extremely challenging to get the opinions removed, said attorney Yuichi Nakazawa, according to AFP.
He said,” This can cause doctors to continue doing their jobs because they are constantly concerned about getting bad reviews.”
The objective of numerous medical institutions is not to meet people, but to deal with their conditions from a professional aspect, the defendants ‘ complaint said.
” Medicals that just give a passing diagnosis to people and only prescribe medications as requested would be inappropriate medically, but patients would be very grateful,” it said.
According to defendants, the nature of the job may occasionally make doctors vulnerable to ad hominem website attacks by people who harbor resentments, too.