Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Health care quality can be surprisingly subjective

Lucy Hornstein, MD
Policy
May 14, 2014
Share
Tweet
Share

Round and round and round we go yet again. The system is broken. Do something. Health care reform!

“Pay for performance” morphs into “measure (and pay) for quality.” The big problem is that no one has bothered to actually define the term, maybe because everyone assumes they know what it means — and that everyone else agrees with them. Wrong.

Quality is very much in the eye of the beholder, and can be surprisingly subjective. From my previous post:

Quality is like pornography; you know it when you experience it. But it cannot be measured; only assessed, and then only subjectively.

What does quality really mean in the context of medical care?

Some argue that when you have an operation, the surgeon shouldn’t leave anything inside you that shouldn’t be there. Others would say that everyone taking care of patients should wash their hands before and after every patient contact. Certainly all medical professionals should maintain proper licensure and credentials. I think of those things as basic expectations; more the difference between “acceptable” and “unacceptable”. “Quality” is different from “not unacceptable.”

Enter the idea of looking at outcomes (another meaningless word, also previously addressed by me). To reiterate: Only certain kinds of illness and injuries have measurable outcomes. Fractures (should) heal. Surgically treated illnesses (should) resolve after operation. And so on. It’s generally accepted that there is a direct causal relationship between medical treatment provided and resolution of the condition, though this is not always so. Postoperative complications are not always preventable. Some fractures won’t heal. Cancers sometimes recur. So even the measurement of outcomes as a proxy for quality is fraught with hazard.

What about the relationship between quality and patient satisfaction? Two words: Press Ganey. Short version is that there are times (lots of times) when what people think they want from doctors is not only not what they need, but can be dangerous, useless, and expensive. The patient is not the customer (and even so, the customer is not always right). When you actually look, it seems like the more satisfied people are, the worse their care.

So what does quality mean in the setting of primary care? Me again:

Quality in medical care has more to do with meeting the needs of individual patients and less to do with checking off boxes on a preventive care form. Some patients want detailed explanations of every facet of their medical care. Others prefer a more “Just the facts!” approach.

What does it mean to be a high quality primary care physician? According to me:

The ability to bring more than one style of communication to bear in meeting the needs of a varied patient base.

How do I and other skilled primary care physicians accomplish this? That’s simple (not the same as easy): time. Taking the time to listen, get to know what kind of communication the patient wants and needs from us, and then providing it. That’s quality. Find a way to pay for it (or at least find a way to not penalize it) and stand back while things fall into place.

ADVERTISEMENT

How to measure it? No one has a clue.

Why not?

Because it can’t be done.

Lucy Hornstein is a family physician who blogs at Musings of a Dinosaur, and is the author of Declarations of a Dinosaur: 10 Laws I’ve Learned as a Family Doctor.

Prev

Residents need to feel empowered by their hospitals

May 14, 2014 Kevin 0
…
Next

Incorporate other hobbies and passions into physicians' daily lives

May 14, 2014 Kevin 1
…

Tagged as: Primary Care

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Residents need to feel empowered by their hospitals
Next Post >
Incorporate other hobbies and passions into physicians' daily lives

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Lucy Hornstein, MD

  • After #MeToo, have the rules changed?

    Lucy Hornstein, MD
  • A patient’s view on cancer surprises this physician

    Lucy Hornstein, MD
  • Never underestimate the power of pus

    Lucy Hornstein, MD

More in Policy

  • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

    Ilan Shapiro, MD
  • Why physician voices matter in the fight against anti-LGBTQ+ laws

    BJ Ferguson
  • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

    Carlin Lockwood
  • What Adam Smith would say about America’s for-profit health care

    M. Bennet Broner, PhD
  • The lab behind the lens: Equity begins with diagnosis

    Michael Misialek, MD
  • Conflicts of interest are eroding trust in U.S. health agencies

    Martha Rosenberg
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • When the diagnosis is personal: What my mother’s Alzheimer’s taught me about healing

      Pearl Jones, MD | Conditions
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
    • Reassessing the impact of CDC’s opioid guidelines on chronic pain care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why flashy AI tools won’t fix health care without real infrastructure

      David Carmouche, MD | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Why shared decision-making in medicine often fails

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Conditions
  • Recent Posts

    • The hidden incentives driving frivolous malpractice lawsuits

      Howard Smith, MD | Physician
    • Why what doctors say matters more than you think [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How Mark Twain would dismantle today’s flawed medical AI

      Neil Baum, MD and Mark Ibsen, MD | Tech
    • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Marketing as a clinician isn’t about selling. It’s about trust.

      Kara Pepper, MD | Physician
    • Graduating from medical school without family: a story of strength and survival

      Anonymous | Education

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 6 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • When the diagnosis is personal: What my mother’s Alzheimer’s taught me about healing

      Pearl Jones, MD | Conditions
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
    • Reassessing the impact of CDC’s opioid guidelines on chronic pain care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why flashy AI tools won’t fix health care without real infrastructure

      David Carmouche, MD | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Why shared decision-making in medicine often fails

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Conditions
  • Recent Posts

    • The hidden incentives driving frivolous malpractice lawsuits

      Howard Smith, MD | Physician
    • Why what doctors say matters more than you think [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How Mark Twain would dismantle today’s flawed medical AI

      Neil Baum, MD and Mark Ibsen, MD | Tech
    • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Marketing as a clinician isn’t about selling. It’s about trust.

      Kara Pepper, MD | Physician
    • Graduating from medical school without family: a story of strength and survival

      Anonymous | Education

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Health care quality can be surprisingly subjective
6 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...