Undisclosed patients' test results may slim survival chances

The first study of its kind found doctors failed to inform patients of abnormal cancer screenings and other test results 1 out of 14 times. Few medical practices had explicit methods for how to tell patients, leaving each doctor to come up with a system. In some offices, patients were told if they didn't hear anything, they could assume their test results were normal.

    Casalino said electronic medical records did not reduce and, in some cases, slightly increased the chances for these kinds of mistakes. "The electronic medical record doesn't magically fix the problem."

    He said doctors should have explicit rules for informing patients of test results. All results should be sent back to the doctor who ordered them, and patients should be told the results of all tests, even if they are normal.

    Casalino and colleagues analyzed more than 5,000 patient records from 23 physician practices across the country, looking at screening tests for conditions such as high cholesterol, diabetes, blood tests for colon cancer and mammograms.

    They found doctors failed to inform patients 7.1 percent of the time. Performance at individual practices varied widely. Some practices always informed patients, and some failed to inform patients 26 percent of the time, Kazinform cites Xinhua. See www.chinaview.cn for full version.