Not all surgeries are necessary but for some reason surgical procedures are constantly performed on seemingly healthy patients. This over-abundance of surgery when other non-surgical options are available may be doing more harm than good. The failure of doctors to tell patients about all available treatment options may, in fact, be surgeon error.
This issue recently came to the forefront after news broke of a British doctors who performed over 1,000 surgeries on apparently healthy women. The trend affects patients in the U.S. and New York as well. The director of the Dartmouth Centre for Heath Care Delivery Science, US, said that the problem is lack of communication. Doctors don’t discuss problems and issues with patients, thus increasing chances for misdiagnosis.
The director also feels that failure to open the lines of communication leads to doctors reinforcing the ideas that they are the experts on the matter and patients follow suit and trust that their doctor is making the right call.
To correct this culture of silence, doctors should have extensive discussion with patients and make sure that they are well-informed. Patients should request information on the treatment options available thus allowing them to make their own decision, with the assistance of a medical professional.
Doctors and surgeons are held to a certain standard of care when it comes to patients and surgical procedures. Performing unnecessary surgeries that lead to unnecessary injuries may be considered negligent behavior and doctors should be held responsible for their actions.
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Well-informed patients help alleviate unnecessary surgeries
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Jay W. Dankner
JAY W. DANKNER was born, raised and educated in Brooklyn, New York. After graduation from law school in 1973, he joined the firm of the legendary, Harry H, Lipsig, under whose tutelage he learned the intricacies of civil litigation and trials. He tried and won his first case against General Motors in a case involving a design defect within weeks after his admission. Thereafter, he focused his attention on the emerging and developing field of law known as products liability litigation.
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