Defensive medicine refers to the idea that doctors are forced to order extra tests, perform extra procedures, or push for more office visits because they think that without them, they’re at greater risk for being sued. This is in spite of the fact that studies don’t support the notion that this extra care actually does reduce their risk.
What might help physicians to get sued less often would be for them to get along better with their patients. Or at least, they could become better communicators. That’s the topic of this week’s Healthcare Triage.
This was based on a piece Aaron wrote for the NYT. Links to further reading can be found there.
