Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 20, 2025

Ultrasonography of the Adult Male Urinary Tract for Urinary Functional Testing
Published on: August 14, 2019
Diagnosis, Bedside Manner and Comment Style are Predictive Factors in Online Ratings of Urologists
Sarah Ferrara1, Wilma M Hopman2, Michael Leveridge1
1Department of Urology, Kingston General Hospital, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
Introduction:
We assess how urologists are rated online by patients and which factors influence these ratings.
Methods:
We created an anonymous database of urologists' ratings from Ontario, Canada using a popular rating website (RateMDs.com). Comments were assessed for mention of diagnosis, bedside manner and nonlinguistic emphasis devices, and the impact of these variables was analyzed.
Results:
A total of 3,288 ratings were identified for 224 urologists (median 15 ratings per urologist, range 1 to 35), representing 75.4% of practicing urologists in the province. Mean rating was 3.96/5 (median 4.75, range 1 to 5). Overall 2,215 ratings (67.4%) were 4/5 or greater. Comment on good bedside manner was associated with higher ratings (mean 4.74 vs 3.92, p <0.001) and comment on poor bedside manner was associated with lower ratings (mean 2.45 vs 4.01, p <0.001). Patients mentioning surgery rated urologists higher than those who did not (4.28 vs 3.85, p <0.001). A specific diagnosis was mentioned in 1,056 cases (32.1%). Mean rating was highest for kidney cancer (4.67) and lowest for vasectomy (3.77, p <0.001). Comments with at least 1 word in full capital letters and those with a word or phrase in quotation marks were accompanied by lower ratings (mean 3.11 vs 4.03 and 3.13 vs 4.02, respectively, p <0.001). Longer comments were also associated with lower ratings (word count 1 to 50-mean rating 4.24, word count 51 to 100-mean rating 3.88, word count greater than 100-mean rating 3.29; p <0.001).
Conclusions:
Urologists are reviewed favorably online. Patients who note surgery, a cancer diagnosis or good bedside manner rate urologists highly, while longer comments, the use of all caps or quotation marks, or mention of a poor bedside manner are associated with lower ratings.
Related Concept Videos
Disorders of the Male Reproductive System
Prostate disorders are another major concern. These conditions can impair urinary flow due to the prostate's location around the urethra....
Urodynamic Studies: Uroflowmetry
The Availability Heuristic
Nursing Assessment of the Genitourinary System I: Health History
Self-Discrepancy Theory
Regression Toward the Mean

