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Colegio de Medicina Interna de México.

2013, Number 1

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Med Int Mex 2013; 29 (1)

Defensive Medicine in a Regional General Hospital

Prieto-Miranda SE, Valdepeña-Ramírez MP, Mora-Sota M, Jiménez- Bernardino CA

Language: Spanish
References: 15
Page: 32-38
PDF size: 196.28 Kb.


ABSTRACT

Background: Defensive medicine, as part of medical practice, seems to be exercised with or without the knowledge of many professionals. Technological advances, patient’s human rights, informed consent, free access to medical information and lack of medical professionalism, probably are participating as conditional factors to this practice.
Objective: To determine the frequency of the practice of defensive medicine in medical specialists of a hospital of second level of attention.
Materials and methods:Cross-sectional, descriptive study. We applied a survey to know the level of defensive medicine in medical specialists of the Regional General Hospital 46 “Lázaro Cárdenas” from the Mexican Institute of Social Security in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. That agreed to participate in this study. The Investigation and Ethics committee of the hospital previously authorized the protocol.
Results: We surveyed 246 (83%) of all hospital doctors, 49 (17%) declined to participate. The gender ratio was 146 (59%) men and 100 (41%) women. The practice of defensive medicine was found at different levels in 177 (72%) of the surveyed physicians. Specialties with more defensive medicine practice were Obstetrics and Gynecology, Internal Medicine, Emergency Medicine, Pediatrics and Orthopedics and Traumatology. The practice of defensive medicine prevailed in recent medical graduates certified by the college of his specialty.
Conclusion: The frequency of defensive medicine is common in medical practice in a Regional General Hospital, and whose effects are still unknown.


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