Patients derogate physicians who use a computer-assisted diagnostic aid

Area of Science:

• Medical Informatics
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Clinical Decision Making

Background:

• Physician diagnostic ability is crucial for patient outcomes.
• Computer-assisted diagnostic support systems (DSS) are increasingly used in healthcare.
• The impact of DSS use on patient perception of physician competence is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate how the use of a diagnostic support system (DSS) affects patient and student perceptions of a physician's diagnostic ability.

Main Methods:

• Four experiments involved students and patients role-playing or interacting with scenarios of physicians using or not using a DSS.
• Participants rated physician diagnostic ability based on described interactions.
• Scenarios included varying levels of DSS use and adherence to recommendations.

Main Results:

• Physicians who did not use any decision aid were consistently rated as having the highest diagnostic ability.
• This perception held true across different experimental conditions and participant groups.

Conclusions:

• Patients may perceive physicians utilizing a DSS as less competent than those who rely solely on their own judgment.
• The findings suggest a potential negative bias against physicians using assistive technologies in diagnosis.