The Interpretation of Laboratory Results: The Paradoxical Effect of Medical Training
Creator
Holtzman, Neil A.
Bibliographic Citation
Journal of Clinical Ethics. 1991 Winter; 2(4): 241-243.
Abstract
A physician's failure to recognize that a test result might be falsely positive can doom a patient to unnecessary treatment. Failure to recognize that a test result might be falsely negative can result in malignant neglect. Yet physicians are often incapable of interpreting probabilistic clinical data correctly. In asking first-year medical students a question on the interpretation of a laboratory test result, I was surprised that a higher proportion answered correctly than was reported for more advanced medical students and physicians. I undertook this study to confirm whether there was a decline in physicians' ability to solve a statistical problem during the course of their medical training and, if so, to begin to search for an explanation.
Permanent Link
Find in a Library.http://hdl.handle.net/10822/736489
Date
1991Collections
Metadata
Show full item recordRelated items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
The Interpretation of Laboratory Results: The Paradoxical Effect of Medical Training
Holtzman, Neil A. (1991)A physician's failure to recognize that a test result might be falsely positive can doom a patient to unnecessary treatment. Failure to recognize that a test result might be falsely negative can result in malignant neglect. ...