| Rising medical liability cost and patient access to care in Puerto Rico: public survey. | |
| | |
MedLine Citation:
|
PMID: 21932711 Owner: NLM Status: In-Process |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
|
OBJECTIVE: The high cost of medical liability increases healthcare expenditure and decreases healthcare services. To understand the public perception of medical liability issues in Puerto Rico, a survey was made with the assistance of Gaither International. METHODS: Five hundred interviews were made in a representative sample of all six US Census demographic regions in Puerto Rico. Respondents were selected randomly by age, gender, socioeconomic level and region of residence. All had visited an Emergency Room in the past two years, either for their medical needs or those of a family member. This study requested information on general demographics, use of emergency medical services, insurance coverage, access to medical care, and perception of the medical liability issues. All results had a margin of error of +/- 4.4 with a 95% confidence level. RESULTS: When rating areas of concern in healthcare, "cost of health insurance and services" was greatest, followed by "difficulty finding a specialist". One-third of respondents experienced difficulty or failed to obtain a specialist, orthopedic surgeons topping the list. When asked who benefits most from lawsuits, 63% of the public believed that lawyers benefit most, while only 33% believed that the patient (plaintiff) benefits most. In the interviews, 84% of respondents supported establishing government limits on professional liability awards as part of the effort to reduce healthcare cost. CONCLUSION: The public appears to be aware of how medical liability raises the cost and limits access to healthcare. |
| | |
Authors:
|
Norma I Cruz; Leo Korchin; Gilberto Castro |
Publication Detail:
|
Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't |
Journal Detail:
|
Title: Puerto Rico health sciences journal Volume: 30 ISSN: 0738-0658 ISO Abbreviation: P R Health Sci J Publication Date: 2011 Sep |
Date Detail:
|
Created Date: 2011-09-21 Completed Date: - Revised Date: - |
Medline Journal Info:
|
Nlm Unique ID: 8303541 Medline TA: P R Health Sci J Country: Puerto Rico |
Other Details:
|
Languages: eng Pagination: 116-22 Citation Subset: IM |
Affiliation:
|
Department of Surgery, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico. normacruz001@gmail.com |
Export Citation:
|
APA/MLA Format Download EndNote Download BibTex |
| MeSH Terms | |
Descriptor/Qualifier:
|
|
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
Previous Document: Increasing incidence of thyroid cancer in Puerto Rico, 1985-2004.
Next Document: Comparing the oral health status of diabetic and non-diabetic children from Puerto Rico: a case-cont...