Doctors bristle at quality Web ratings in two cities

Some physicians in Portland, Ore., and Cincinnati are concerned about a new database in which patients rate them on quality of care.

By Damon Adams, AMNews staff. June 11, 2001.

Cincinnati patients are the second nationwide to be queried about their physicians for an Internet database rating primary care doctors.

Portland was the first city to have its physicians rated by National Research Corp., and some doctors there did not warm to the idea. Cincinnati physicians aren't any more optimistic. Medical associations in both cities question the way ratings are compiled and say the surveys provide little useful information for patients.

"Our response was, it's worthless," said Jim Kronenberg, associate executive director of the Portland-based Oregon Medical Assn. "It's got this sort of Mickey Mouse seal of approval without any real hard data."

The Academy of Medicine of Cincinnati, which boasts 2,400 physician members, would not support the project, which rates family physicians, internists, pediatricians and obstetricians-gynecologists.

"The academy refused to participate because [the survey] was flawed by what it was trying to do and how it was intending to do it," said Russell Dean, academy executive director.

But health plans are embracing the database. Cincinnati Group Health Associates said the survey would replace its patient satisfaction surveys.

"This allows us to get scientifically valid satisfaction data," said Janet Gaffin, Group Health's quality improvement coordinator.

National Research, based in Lincoln, Neb., gives performance measurement data to the health care industry. In Portland, it got patient names and addresses from three health plans interested in the firm's proposed database: Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon, ODS Health Plan and Providence Health Plans. In return, the plans receive for free more detailed data than posted on a public Web site. [...]