Off topic – 20 percent overtreatment in US
Overtreatment Is Common, Doctors Say New York Times Sept 2017
Summary of a survey published in PLOS One
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| ** | ||
|---|---|---|
| 21 % | of medical care was unnecessary | |
| 22 % | of prescriptions | |
| 25 % | of tests | |
| 11 % | of procedures | ** |
| ** | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fear of malpractice | 84.7% | |
| Patient pressure/request | 59.0% | |
| Difficulty accessing prior medical records | 38.2% | |
| Borderline indications | 37.7% | |
| Inadequate time to spend with patients | 37.4% | |
| Lack of adequate information/previous medical history | 36.7% | |
| Pressure from the institution/management | 20.8% | |
| Looking good in performance evaluations | 13.4% | |
| The hassle of communicating with other physicians | 11.9% | |
| Pressure from colleagues | 11.8% | |
| Financial security of physicians | 9.2% | |
| I don’t think there is any overutilization | 1.1% | ** |
Suspect that 20% overtreatment, etc., adds <10% to cost of medical care