Medical Governance

All clinical protocols used in Digital Doctor are created and owned by Dr. Seneth Gajasinghe of Sineth Hospitals, Sri Lanka.

Dr. Seneth Gajasinghe holds medical responsibility for the clinical content of all protocols published on this platform. All additions, modifications, or removals of protocol content are subject to medical review and approval.

How Protocols Are Created

• Each protocol targets a specific symptom relevant to common minor illness in Sri Lankan adults.
• Protocols are based on established clinical principles, evidence-based medicine, and Sri Lanka-specific healthcare context.
• Every protocol follows the mandatory sequence: emergency screening → beyond-scope screening → symptomatic guidance.
• Emergency red-flag questions are drawn from standard clinical danger sign criteria for the relevant symptom.
• Beyond-scope criteria identify situations where self-care guidance is not safe.
• Treatment guidance uses generic medicine names and general safe principles suitable for self-care.

How Protocols Are Reviewed

• Protocols are reviewed by the designated medical reviewer (Dr. Seneth Gajasinghe) before publication.
• Periodic reviews are planned at least every six months.
• Emergency review is triggered if new clinical evidence, safety concerns, or medicine availability changes affect a protocol.
• Protocol version and review date are recorded in each protocol file.

How Updates Are Made

• Protocol updates are version-controlled. The version number and review date are updated with each change.
• Major clinical changes trigger a full protocol review before publication.
• The platform's protocol files are separate from the website code, allowing clinical content to be updated independently.

Why Some Users Are Referred Instead of Receiving Treatment

Digital Doctor is designed to recognise the limits of safe digital guidance. A user is directed to seek medical care instead of receiving a treatment plan when:

• Emergency warning signs are present — no treatment is safe to offer; urgent care is the only appropriate response.
• The situation is beyond the scope of minor symptom management — physical examination, investigations, or professional judgment is required.
• The symptom pattern does not match a clearly minor self-limiting condition.
• Individual risk factors (pregnancy, immune suppression, chronic disease) make self-care guidance unsafe.

Being directed to seek care is a safety outcome, not a failure of the platform.

Why Digital Doctor May Not Provide a Diagnosis

Diagnosis requires clinical examination, investigation, and professional judgment that cannot be replicated by a digital platform. Digital Doctor focuses on symptomatic treatment guidance for likely minor self-limiting conditions, not definitive diagnosis.

Providing a named diagnosis without proper assessment could be misleading and potentially dangerous. The platform may mention possible conditions where clinically appropriate, but always with clear caveats.