About 1/2 of Surveyed Docs Say They Stretch Truth
Feb
9
Written by:
2/9/2012
A physician survey conducted by Massachusetts researchers and published this month in Health Affairs, indicated that more than half of the surveyed doctors admitted to describing someone's prognosis in a way that they knew was too rosy.
The lead researcher, Harvard's Lisa Iezzoni, said she didn't think these physicians set out to be dishonest, but may have given untruths to give people hope. The survey involved 1,800 physicians and was conducted in 2009.
However, the article emphasizes that it takes open communication for patients to make fully informed decisions about their health care, as opposed to "doctor knows best." In addition, the researchers write that the survey offers "a reason for patients to be vigilant and to be very clear with their physician about how much they do want to know."
The vast majority of those surveyed agreed that physicians should fully inform patients of risks, not just benefits, of treatment options and never tell a patient something that isn't true.
Voluntary standards established in 2002 state that doctors should be open and honest about all aspects of patient care, and promptly disclose mistakes. Still, one third of the surveyed physicians say doctors shouldn't "fess up," for fear of lawsuits.
This, despite the fact that an increasing number of medical centers are adopting policies that state doctors should admit and apologize for their mistakes. Studies show that patients who are told about mistakes their physician made are less likely to sue than if the patient discovers the mistake on their own.
HIPAA requires that physicians tell patients their diagnosis and describe all available treatment options, including benefits as well as risk factors. Unfortunately, this isn't always the case.
Source:
Associated Press, "About Half of Surveyed Docs Say They Stretch The Truth: Some say they avoid disclosing a mistake," Gazette Telegraph, Feb 9, 2012
1 comment(s) so far...
Doctors are trained to practice "defensive medicine" given a litigious society. I've never met a doctor who admitted to a wrong diagnosis, drug, therapy, or procedure: it's standard fare and policy to practice defensive medicine. There's also the practice of dumping, i.e. expunging patients who are problematic medically. The question is, how did this come to pass? Is it solely our litigious society, or does the burden also fall to medical college training?
Patients need to read the circulars and do their own reading and research if they want the truth about their condition and the statistical and qualitative outcomes of various therapies. They need to be aware that defensive medicine and dumping can be primary revenue drivers in a physician's practice. Most patients would not mind the organic nature of therapy, i.e. having their therapies altered if another proves unsuccessful. They want their physicians to be honest and above all else have a real concern for their health and well-being as a matter of physician-patient trust.
By admin on
2/14/2012
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