Health Care

by: John Tech

A recent study by BMJ showed that approximately half of U.S. doctors frequently use a placebo. This made mainstream headlines and has spawned much debate among healthcare providers about the results. This number seems staggering at first. The survey was a mailed questionnaire that was sent to 1200 internists and rheumatologists in the U.S. A little more than half responded to the survey, and about half of those indicated that they had indeed used a placebo to treat a patient. Nearly two-thirds indicated that it was ethical to use a placebo.

A little closer inspection of the mind-blowing headline showed that there were several levels of placebo. Many indicated that they had used vitamins or over-the-counter drugs such as aspirin. Only a few indicated that they had actually used a sugar pill or saline, the typical interpretation of a placebo. But more than a handful of doctors indicated that they used antibiotics or sedatives to treat a medical condition for which they couldnt identify or resolve using the traditional treatments.

This dangerous statistic is especially scary because scientists are convinced that use of antibiotics leads to mutations that are more resistant to antibiotics. We may need additional clinical studies on this, but generally this is an understood fact. This fear of a superbug has often led to patient frustration and dissatisfaction, as they ask for antibiotics when they have a common cold or flu. Patients then shop for doctors who ignore these warnings and prescribe antibiotics for conditions in which they should not receive the medicine.

That over 13 percent of doctors are taking this risk to satisfy their patients is alarming. The fact that we as patients are so convinced of the success of the antibiotics that dont work other than as a placebo is more alarming. In short, the reason that this placebo study is alarming isnt that half of doctors are using placebos. It is that these doctors are supporting a behavior that is dangerous to our overall good. It is time that all doctors look in the mirror and decide to not prescribe antibiotics that arent indicated. It is time that patients are educated properly and start listening to the other 87 percent of doctors who refuse (or dont admit) to prescribing antibiotics that dont match the condition.

This is yet another reason we should institute a national electronic health records system (http://www.chartlogic.com) to identify these behaviors and take action to prevent individuals from causing larger health care issues.