Doctors Invite Patients To Take Online Surveys Hoping To Avoid Public Web Reviews

    DENVER, CO, February 02, 2010 /24-7PressRelease/ -- With people increasingly relying on the internet as an information source to make decisions about their medical provider, medical and dental professionals are concerned with websites where patients can post public reviews about doctors. Typically, any person - not only frustrated patients - may voice their opinions on random sites and doctors do not even know they are being evaluated.

To mitigate the chances of receiving bad online publicity, a few doctors are requiring patients to sign a waiver that prohibits them to post online comments - either positive or negative. This approach has been controversial with experts claiming that patients are trading their freedom of speech for medical care. Requesting such waivers may also raise questions about the doctor on patients' minds; in fact, there is an online "wall of shame" that lists the doctors who require patients to sign these agreements.

More recently, health professionals are discovering that some online patient surveys can be an effective way to direct patients' comments to a safe environment since survey results are shared solely with the doctor - and not made public. A dermatologist says: "I hand out a survey invitation card to every patient so they can go online and take a standard survey. Besides reducing the risk of having patients post comments on random websites, I demonstrate my commitment to excellence in patient care and I gain insights about the patients' experiences". She currently uses the survey services of Report For Doc (www.reportfordoc.com) and pays $65 a month.

While satisfaction surveys do not eliminate the risk of someone posting reviews on random websites, they proactively direct patients to a channel where doctors are in charge. In times when communications flow instantly, gaining additional control about their reputation is appealing to many professionals. "Taking preventive measures to protect your career is certainly wise. We cannot control how people behave on the web, but we can at least proactively direct them to a proper feedback channel," says the dermatologist.

Website: http://www.reportfordoc.com

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