Brazilian Hospitals Reward Doctors for Ordering Extra Procedures

03/01/2017 - 12h00

Private hospitals in Brazil have adopted programs that reward doctors for the volume of exams, surgeries and admissions that they order.

The number of procedures they authorize is proportional to their numerical evaluation. Those with the highest numbers are recognized and given privileges within the hospital.

Presents, discounts and exams are given to physicians and their families in addition to priority use of the surgical facilities.

The Folha spoke with 12 professionals from four different States anonymously. "There are doctors that hold a patient under admission for no reason other than to generate more daily hospital rates", explains one of them from São Paulo.

Hospitals are compensated according to the quantity of services provided, not by the quality of those services.

This practice, questioned by ethical and management specialists, can lead to unnecessary procedures being performed and expose patients to unnecessary risks, in addition to elevated health care costs - the bill being paid by healthcare plans and users.

Translated by LLOYD HARDER

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