When you need a prescription drug, often your doctor has a choice.
What’s best for one patient with your condition might not be best for
you—choosing the best drug is a matter of problem-solving, of matching a
person’s variables—age, gender, allergies, other health issues,
etc.—with the drug most likely to provide benefit with minimal risk of
side effects.
But as investigative health journalists Tracy Weber and Charles Ornstein point out in a Los Angeles Times commentary, “For most of us, evaluating a doctor's prescribing habits is just about impossible. Even doctors themselves have little way of knowing whether their drug choices fall in line with those of their peers.”
How can you know, for example, if a doctor generally prefers expensive brand-name drugs when generics might be an equally suitable choice? How do you know if a doctor remains current with clinical trials and the latest drug information?
http://www.protectpatientsblog.com/2013/07/tracking_a_doctors_prescribing.html
But as investigative health journalists Tracy Weber and Charles Ornstein point out in a Los Angeles Times commentary, “For most of us, evaluating a doctor's prescribing habits is just about impossible. Even doctors themselves have little way of knowing whether their drug choices fall in line with those of their peers.”
How can you know, for example, if a doctor generally prefers expensive brand-name drugs when generics might be an equally suitable choice? How do you know if a doctor remains current with clinical trials and the latest drug information?
http://www.protectpatientsblog.com/2013/07/tracking_a_doctors_prescribing.html
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