According to a new study from researchers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, online rating websites may not provide the information you need when looking for a high-quality doctor. The overall message: reading reviews and ratings online provide little in the way of determining the quality of a specialist doctor.
It is important to note, however, that even the most skilled physicians can make diagnostic mistakes and errors in judgment or treatment that cause serious harm to their patients. In fact, medical malpractice cases against doctors in a wide range of specialties occur on a regular basis, including those involving mistakes by Anesthesiologists, Cardiologists, Endocrinologists, Gastroenterologists, Gynecologists, Internists, Neurologists, Pediatricians, Radiologists, Surgeons; and Urologists.
At Fronzuto Law Group, our attorneys concentrate on medical malpractice and pediatric malpractice in order to hone our skills and remain at the forefront of current case law in these highly complex areas. When we take your case, we thoroughly investigate the circumstances to identify any and all negligent parties and consult with highly respected medical experts to develop the most comprehensive claim for damages. It is our passion to aggressively advocate for victims across New Jersey and we fight tirelessly to obtain the compensation you deserve. If a medical professional or specialist caused you or someone you love to suffer harm, contact our offices today at 973-435-4551 to receive a free consultation. Our New Jersey medical malpractice team will be happy to review your case and discuss all of your legal options.
What the Study Said about Doctor Reviews and Actual Performance
The aforementioned study, entitled “Online physician ratings fail to predict actual performance on measures of quality, value, and peer review,” was recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association. In the course of the research, investigators sought to determine whether or not online ratings of doctors in various specialties actually coincided with objective measurements of quality and value of care, as well as peer-assessed performance.
The research included 78 physicians across 8 medical and surgical specialties. Researchers used data from 5 online review/rating platforms, including Yelp, Healthgrades, RateMDs, UCompareHealthCare, and Vitals, to develop a framework for patient evaluations of each doctor that were posted on websites across the Internet.
Then, they compared consumer ratings with objective performance scores using metrics such as: rates of patient readmission, length of patients’ stays in the hospital, adherence to accepted standard of care/practical guidelines, and adjusted cost of care (meaning the amount of money spent to treat a patient versus their health outcome). They also used qualitative feedback in the form of peer-reviews, including primary care physician and administrator peer-review scores.
In terms of results, the study showed no significant correlation between online consumer ratings and doctors’ performance scores across specialties. The research did raise an important issue: these online rating websites do not currently incorporate patient outcomes in their ratings and reviews, which may be something they seek to rectify in the future.
For additional information regarding this issue, access the following article: Don’t Yelp Your Doctor. Study Finds Ratings Are All Wrong
