Physician and patient perception: Doctors, don’t penalize patients for incorrect information

Patients and physicians have perceptions about patients who provide incorrect medical information. What does that mean in the examination room? Doctors need to understand that patients did not go to medical school and do not understand everything about a new diagnosis. It’s the physician’s job to know about medicine and educate patients. Jessecae K. Marsh, PhD, co-author of the study, “Perceived Penalties for Sharing Patient Believes with Health Care Providers,” explains. Additional authors are Onur Asan, PhD, and Samantha Kleinberg, PhD, both of the Stevens Institute of Technology.