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Heart surgeons have written to the NHS England chief executive asking for a rethink of the policy of publishing patients’ death rates, claiming it is causing some colleagues to avoid risky operations.
A letter to Simon Stevens from the Society for Cardiothoracic Surgery, which represents heart doctors, says there is now considerable debate among its members over the value of surgeon-specific patient mortality data.
The body representing the surgeons writes: “This debate is primarily driven by concern that publishing at consultant level results in risk-averse behaviour, with some surgeons less willing to operate on patients with a perceived high risk of mortality, despite potential overall patient benefit, because of a fear for the potential adverse consequences for themselves if the patient dies”.
http://www.theguardian.com/society/...ts-death-rates-bruce-keogh-jeremy-hunt-health
A letter to Simon Stevens from the Society for Cardiothoracic Surgery, which represents heart doctors, says there is now considerable debate among its members over the value of surgeon-specific patient mortality data.
The body representing the surgeons writes: “This debate is primarily driven by concern that publishing at consultant level results in risk-averse behaviour, with some surgeons less willing to operate on patients with a perceived high risk of mortality, despite potential overall patient benefit, because of a fear for the potential adverse consequences for themselves if the patient dies”.
http://www.theguardian.com/society/...ts-death-rates-bruce-keogh-jeremy-hunt-health