![]() ![]() Younger patients - aged 25 to 34 - are more likely to lie about recreational drug use, sexual history, and smoking than patients who are 55 or older, while men are significantly more likely to lie about how much they drink than women, according to the survey.Īnother study by the nonprofit California HealthCare Foundation in 2005 found that one in eight patients engaged in behavior presenting a potential risk to their health, to protect their personal privacy. Another 22 percent lied about smoking, 17 percent lied about sex, 16 percent lied about their intake of alcohol, and 12 percent lied about recreational drug use. You could prescribe something that could have a potentially fatal complication.”Ī WebMD survey in 2004 found that 38 percent of patients lied or “stretched the truth” about following their doctor’s orders, while 32 percent lied about their diet or how much they exercised. Perhaps they’re taking a psychiatric medication that they don’t tell you about and you’re seeing them for their blood pressure. “Sometimes patients see more than one physician because they try to compartmentalize their health issues or view them to be unrelated. ![]() “People might fail to disclose a serious risk factor like sexual practice or IV sharing, but the most dangerous is not being honest about what medications they are taking,” says Glen Stream, a primary-care physician with the Rockwood Clinic in Spokane, Wash. Worse, it ups the odds that physicians might prescribe a medication that would react negatively with a drug the patient is already (secretly) taking. Unfortunately, such deceit forces physicians to order unnecessary and increasingly invasive tests to diagnose the patient’s problem. Others do it because they want something from their doctor - like pain medication or a diagnosis that enables them to collect disability. Indeed, a surprising number of patients withhold information or outright lie to their doctors for fear of being judged, an aversion to being lectured, or because they wish to present themselves in a positive light. Oddly, though, it’s often the patients themselves who sabotage their own medical outcomes. They demand the best care, the latest drugs and the most advanced diagnostics available - and they seek nothing less than a total recovery. When patients get sick, they expect their doctor to make them well. How to identify patient dishonesty that compromises care, encourage full disclosure, and build trust ![]()
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