This week, gossip news outlet TMZ reported that eight psychiatrists had contacted them to express their shock at the Cedars Sinai Medical Center for allowing Dr. Phil to visit with Britney Spears during her recent hospitalization. I am now contacting you to express my shock that psychiatrists consider TMZ a legitimate place to articulate their concerns regarding this ethical dilemma. That gives me a headache.

But the doctors do present an important question: what in the world was the Cedars staff thinking? Not to jump on the “Let’s talk about Britney!” bandwagon, but the poor girl’s business has been broadcast in front of millions for almost a decade. And in the past couple of years, we’ve all watched her struggle to keep afloat.

So I’m left to wonder why a prestigious medical center—one that most likely spends a good portion of its budget on legal staffers who should know better—would risk its reputation to accommodate someone with “celebrity” status. One of the TMZ-loving shrinks offered a theory that it might be because the hospital was “star struck” by the great Dr. Phil. I hope that does not end up being the excuse they use in the press release, especially because the stars that usually fill the Cedars luxury suites have much higher profiles than Dr. Phil (read: Gwen Stefani, Brooke Shields, Katie Holmes, Julia Roberts, Madonna).

To read more of the flimsy excuses, I mean, possible reasons behind the hospital’s transgression, click here.

Image: PTCA.org.

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