Taking a proper clinical history is one of the most important things doctors do when they treat their patients. Unfortunately, that communication isn’t always ideal. Patients aren’t always the best reporters of their symptoms, doctors don’t always ask the right questions, and sometimes actual deception is involved.

So says Dr. Sandeep Jauhar in an Op Ed for the New Your Times. Read it here:

[The Lies That Doctors and Patients Tell][1]

Certainly, deception can have its place in medicine. Think of the cancer doctors who aren’t entirely upfront with a patient’s prognosis. Hope can help fight disease.

And it’s understandable in the example that Dr. Jauhar uses – an elderly woman he is convinced he can save with more treatment.

But it’s not understandable when deception is used to perform surgeries and other treatments that have questionable value, especially when the patient isn’t fully informed about the possibilities that such treatment will work.

A good example can be found in recent studies that show a huge increase in the number of lumbar spine fusions being done on older patients with chronic low back pain. It is uncommon for the patient to experience a significant improvement, and worse outcomes occur on a frequent basis. The operations are also expensive, but Medicare pays for them without advance approval. That may be a factor in the willingness of surgeons to recommend the procedures. Hospitals also benefit from the facility and other costs associated with the hospital stay required for the surgeries.

[1]: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/02/20/the-lies-that-doctors-and-patients-tell/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=1 “The Lies That Doctors and Patients Tell”