Tuesday, September 29, 2015

"What are the red flags that people shoud look out for in order to avoid an incompetent or "bad" doctor?"

Doctors of Reddit, Up voted comments...
Unfortunately I don't think there's a simple way for people without a medical background to evaluate the competence of their doctor. We get credited with cures unrelated to treatment and blamed for misfortunes that could not have been reasonably avoided. Patient satisfaction has far more to do with a doctor's interpersonal skills than their clinical acumen.
"Patient satisfaction has far more to do with a doctor's interpersonal skills than their clinical acumen."
My wife works for a surgeon's group and we've talked about how malpractice claims track with bedside manner, and not the skill of the clinician.
As a layman, I believe this and it scares me shitless. Especially when I think of the incompetent people in my profession, who people have no idea are incompetent, and apply that thought to medicine.
I have to say that patient satisfaction isn't what a doctor should look out for first and foremost. My mother is a midwife (i.e. not a doctor, but still in a medical profession) and through her I've seen and heard of the 'rankings' their patients give. The top 10 best midwife practices in the country are always the ones that give in to demands.
"But I want my baby to be born at home!" "k" "You're the best in the country11!!1!" is a common situation, despite the fact that in many cases the decision a good midwife should have made is to have the kid be born in the hospital. I regularly heard about patients who were outraged and angry when my mother firmly said that they couldn't have the kid be born at home because it would be dangerous, and I've heard of a few cases where these women go to the competitor with an overlapping service area, get what they want and then rate these competitors as being the better practice, despite the fact that they did something that is medically inexcusable. Incompetence has many forms, but low patient satisfaction isn't always it.

8 comments:

edutcher said...

Cultivate friendships among the nurses at any hospital in your area.

You will learn who's good, who's bad, who's dangerous, and who will treat you like a human being.

deborah said...

Great advice Ed. I was at a gastro's for a pre endoscopy consult. I knew one of the techs. She said my guy was good, but watch out for the other one. GOOD TO KNOW!

ricpic said...

Who doesn't want a doc with a great bedside manner when they're hurting? I know I do. But realistically you're dealing with a very high grade (you hope) mechanic who's pressed for time. Count yourself lucky if whatever medicine he prescribes helps more than it hurts.

And yes, I know there are lots of woman doctors but I hate HATE that he/she business. It makes me break stride!

edutcher said...

Good point, ric. As The Blonde says, the doctor sees you for 5 minutes tops, the nurse is there for 12 hours.

Guess who's gonna save your ass if you go bad.

Methadras said...

People who insist on medical practitioners caving into their demands on medical procedures like childbirth should A) never been allowed to have children and B) Should be left to their own devices if they think they know so much. If I was a midwife and ran into a person like this, I'd just get my shit and leave without a word.

Bleach Drinkers Curing Coronavirus Together said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Leland said...

Yet patient satisfaction is exactly how Obamacare determines reimbursement rates for medical services.

William said...

I prefer to view them as a commodity. I know that's probably not true, but it's less stressful to take that position. Most illnesses aren't that complicated or occult and can be treated successfully by a PA. Anyway, the sole advantage of old age (besides the SS checks) is the absolute certainty that you won't die young.