The Sorry State of Medical Care: A New Study Tells Just How Bad It Really Is!

Room for Improvement: Patients Report on the Quality of their Health Care¹ is a recently released study conducted by Princeton Research associates using 25-minute telephone conversations in six different languages with 6,722 adults, over a six-month period in 2001. The survey report is a lengthy 19 pages, but here are a few interesting results:

1. Over one-fifth (22 percent) of adults reported they or a family member experienced a medical error or prescription drug error.

• medication or medical error - 22 percent;


• mistake at physician's office or hospital - 10 percent; and


• wrong medication or dose - 16 percent

1. Nearly one-fifth (19 percent) of adults cited problems communicating with their physicians.

• patients leaving the visit with questions about their care that they had wanted to discuss but did not - 12 percent;


• patients reporting that the doctor listened some or only a little to what they had to say - nine percent; and


• Patients understanding some or only a little of what the doctor told them - seven percent.

1. Nearly One-Fourth (24 percent) of Americans have had a time when they did not follow their physician's advice.

• disagreed with recommendation - 39 percent;


• didn't follow advise because of costs involved - 27 percent;


• instructions were too difficult - 26 percent;


• advice was against their personal beliefs - 20 percent; and


• didn't understand doctor's advice - seven percent.

1. Two-thirds of Americans did not have long-term relationship with their physicians.

• no regular doctor - 23 percent;


• same doctor for fewer than five years - 43 percent;


• same doctor for more than five years - 34 percent.

The study authors' comments were no less stinging:

"For too long, physicians and hospitals have demonstrated little interest in knowing how they are judged on quality of care, preferring to be blinded by institutional or professional pride. The reality is that substandard quality is not a problem for just a few disadvantaged patients or a handful of poorly trained physicians - it is pervasive throughout the health care system and is the end result of the fact that inadequate mechanisms are in place to insure quality."

Having said this, doctors of chiropractic must constantly be on guard that the care they provide does not sink to this level under the weight of managed care. It might do well for each DC to test his or her own practice on the four areas above and look at the score:

1. Is your care as accurate and effective as it could be?


2. Do your patients understand what you are telling them? (Are you answering all of their questions?)


3. Are they following your advice when they leave your office?


4. How long have you known each patient, and what kind of relationship do you have with them?

It is important to be vigilant in our efforts to provide the very best chiropractic care we can. Quality is what will ultimately show chiropractic's effectiveness and bring new patients to your office!

Reference

1. Davis K, Schoenbaum SC, Collins KS, Tenney K, Hughes DL, Audet AMJ. Room for Improvement: Patients Report on the Quality of Their Health Care. Princeton Survey Research Associates, April 2002. Available on line at www.cmwf.org.

Donald M. Petersen Jr.,BS, HCD (hc), FICC(h)
Editor / Publisher of Dynamic Chiropractic
don@mpamedia.com