Using methods of constructive criticism, hierarchy or judgment, many people seek the best they can find. Five star hotels, Grade A beef, first place winner. In almost every industry, people are able to rate a person, place or thing. What if you could rate your physician and share that information online?
As a dermatologist at Wake Forest University specializing in psoriasis, Dr. Steven R. Feldman, MD, PhD, and president of Medical Quality Enhancement Corporation felt the need to provide his patients a forum to find the ultimate in health care. He began issuing patient surveys and found the information very valuable.
“I learned that patients needed more than just the right diagnosis and treatment. I founded DrScore as a way to help doctors get feedback from patients more easily and inexpensively,” said Feldman.
Patients visit www.drscore.com and report how satisfied they are with various aspects of the visit. The survey is short, but when patients do report an area that can be improved, the survey hones in on that area giving doctors the necessary detail to make their practice better.
The Web site lets patients look up doctors’ scores for free. DrScore.com also gives patients links to information such as patient advocacy groups, professional medical organizations and the National Library of Medicine based on the specialty of the doctor being rated or searched.
Drscore.com has taken word of mouth physician finding to a whole new level and allows doctors to get honest feedback from patients who may feel intimidated to express their views directly to their physician.
While Feldman believes in empowering patients through his Web site, other physicians don’t necessarily agree with his methods of doctor/patient feedback.
“When it comes to transparency and quality, this is good. It brings more information public and creates healthy competition,” said John Stewart, president and CEO of St. Vincent Heart Center of Indiana. “However, we have no uniform set of definitions on what is to be measured and reported. Companies use their own methodology.”
Stewart also fears the language and doctor jargon used may be confusing to the average patient giving doctors an invalid score. As with any subject matter on the Internet, not everything is true.
“You have garbage on the internet. We owe the public a better way to do this. You can also have individuals that have a personality clash that chooses to have a personal vendetta and write things. We hear it everyday about people who sue and win because of false reporting,” said Stewart.
“At times the single voice can be so loud, it can actually damage a good doctor,” adds Dr. Richard Graffis, chief medical officer, Clarian Health Partners.
He does believe today’s patient changes doctors more than in years past, but Graffis suggests patients find a primary care doctor to their liking and in turn the primary care doctor can refer them to trustworthy and skilled specialists if necessary.
Neither Stewart nor Graffis disagree that patients should be empowered to take their health care and physician choice into their own hands, but argue sites like Drscore.com may not fairly score doctors on true skill or capability.
Additionally, in order to be admitted to practice under a hospital corporation, physicians must prove a rigorous credential and training process by physicians who have expertise and have been sanctioned, approved and appointed by a board of directors. In short, doctors judge one another.
Stewart and Graffis state doctors judging doctors on skill does not negate a habitually late physician or one that does not completely listen to patients.
Feldman believes Drscore.com goes several steps further, giving patients a more representative picture of how satisfied patients are with doctors.
However, Graffis states patients should check if their doctor is board certified, find detailed information through their health care provider and use their first visit as a gage to how helpful the doctor is.
“You might get the name off of a Web site, but there’s more to a recommendation than that,” said Graffis. “Body language, the impression they get from talking to them, how kind they are treated is much more helpful than a Web site.”
