THE "NEW" PROSTATE CANCER INFOLINK

A recent article on Medscape is titled “Physician-ratings websites get zero stars from doctors,” but if you read the article all the way through, it is clear than not all doctors are “turned off” by sites that rate their capabilities at all. The doctors who are giving these sites “zero stars” appear to be doctors who don’t believe patients have the right to question their skills.

We hasten to add that our parent not-for-profit, Prostate Cancer International, is not (well, not yet anyway) getting into rating physicians for their skills in treating prostate cancer, but we do think that:

• Patients’ ratings of physicians are an increasingly inevitable component of the doctor-patient relationship.
• Wise physicians should encourage their patients to post ratings to such web sites if the patients are satisfied (and better still highly satisfied) by their experiences
• Clearly derogatory postings by patients should be brought to the attention of individual physicians by web site service providers so that they can respond appropriately.

It is unfair to even bad physicians to have adverse comments about their skills and abilities posted online by patients who they know did not follow the advice and medical guidance that was given to them. Naturally patients have the right not to follow the advice and guidance offered, but it is improper for those same patients to then blame the physician when things go wrong if the patient was clearly advised not to do what he or she then went and did!

Over time we believe that a validated and “fair” set of physician ratings systems will develop on line, and The “New” Prostate Cancer InfoLink encourages patients and their physicians to participate in the best of these services. We have a small number of guidelines that we recommend for all parties in using these systems:

• Tell the truth, because in using these systems your goal should be to help and advise other users of the systems.
• Keep comments short, simple, and to the point — your personal views get boring really fast unless you are a great writer.
• Make sure you can document evidence for adverse comments when you believe these are needed.
• Make sure you differentiate between “soft” satisfaction issues (e.g., quality and comfort of the physician’s offices and exam rooms) and the more critical skills of the personnel, including the doctor him- or herself.
• Avoid being rude; it isn’t necessary.
• If you are angry about something, wait to comment until your anger has passed and you can comment appropriately.
• If you use these systems to praise or to complain  about physicians and their practices, have the good manners to let them know.

The nature of the doctor-patient relationship is evolving over the Internet as this post is being written. A decade from now, young men and women who are 10 and 15 years old today will be astonished by — and perhaps even unbelieving of — the paternalistic relationship between the medical profession and patients that was normal in the youth of many of the readers of this web site today!

Filed under: Living with Prostate Cancer Tagged: | doctor-patient relationship