OBSTETRICIANS PRIOR MALPRACTICE EXPERIENCE AND PATIENTS SATISFACTION WITH CARE

Objective.-To examine the relationship between prior physician malprac tice experience and patients' satisfaction with care. Design.-Women we re interviewed using a questionnaire that contained structured and ope n-ended questions. Participants.-Mothers of all stillborn infants, inf ant deaths, and a random sampling of viable infants drawn from 1987 Fl orida Vital Statistics were sorted into four groups based on the malpr actice claims experience of their obstetricians between 1983 and 1986. Interviews were completed with 963 of 1536 women, most by telephone, 53 by in-person interview. Main Outcome Measures.-Mothers' responses t o closed-ended and open-ended questions about their perceptions of the care they received during their pregnancy, labor, and delivery. Resul ts.-Even though none of the women actually filed a claim, a consistent pattern of differences emerged when comparing women's perceptions of care received. Patients seeing physicians with the most frequent numbe rs of claims but without high payments were significantly more likely to complain that they felt rushed, never received explanations for tes ts, and were ignored. In response to the open-ended question, ''What p art of your care were you least satisfied with?'' women seeing physici ans in the High Frequency malpractice risk group offered twice as many complaints as those seeing physicians who had never been sued. Proble ms with physician-patient communication were the most commonly offered complaints. Conclusion.-Physicians who have been sued frequently are more often the objects of complaints about the interpersonal care they provide even by their patients who do not sue.