What does Sermo literarily mean?

Sermo was originally imagined as an adverse effect reporting system. Reporting systems failed during Merck's 2004 Vioxx (Rofecoxib) recall, which removed Vioxx, a Cox-2 inhibitor, from the market due to an increased risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack). Daniel Palestrant believed that an online forum could collect and filter these types of observations more effectively than existing systems. The site has since grown into a discussion board covering a variety of clinical topics.

Physicians can register after verifying their status as licensed, practicing physicians and receive a pseudonym of their choice. This pseudonym and the doctor’s specialty are the only pieces of information that other doctors will be able to see automatically, making Sermo a credentialed, but anonymous community. Doctors post observations and comments, create and respond to polls, and browse medical articles within the site. They can also create profiles, revealing more information about themselves. This ability, and the closed nature of the site, has led some sources to refer to Sermo as a “MySpace for Physicians.”

The comparison isn’t quite apt, since Sermo is more of a vertical community (a type of virtual community) than a traditional social network service. Doctors use the site mainly to exchange professional opinions and insights in an anonymous environment, not connect to other people they know and share personal information.

The Latin word for Talk is Sermo, Sermo is defined as: talk, common talk, rumor, report, discussion.