Physicians' perceptions of doctor shopping in West Virginia

Prescription drug abuse and diversion continue to be serious problems in West Virginia and nationwide. Doctor shopping (visiting multiple doctors in a short time frame with the intent to deceive them to obtain controlled substances) is illegal and one way that patients gain access to prescription drugs. We surveyed West Virginia physicians in emergency medicine, family medicine, and internal medicine to determine their experience with and attitudes toward doctor shopping, and to assess attitudes toward proposed legislation to protect physicians who report doctor shoppers to law enforcement officials. Of 452 physicians surveyed, 258 responded (57%). Emergency medicine physicians had the highest response rate (61%) and most frequent encounters (once a week or more often) with doctor shoppers compared to family medicine and internal medicine physicians (88% vs 25% vs 14%, P < .001). Eighty-one percent of physicians reported using the West Virginia Board of Pharmacy Controlled Substances Monitoring Program website, but only 22 percent presently report doctor shoppers. If the law protected them, 85 percent of all physicians reported they would be likely to report doctor shoppers.