Doc-rating websites reflect too few views

Though many doctors fear that a few bad online reviews could hurt their reputation, a study published recently in the Journal of Urology finds that most ratings are favorable--but based on reviews by only two or three patients. Researchers from the Loyola University Medical Center studied reviews of 500 urologists--471 males and 29 females--on sites such as Healthgrades.com, Vitals.com and RateMDs.com. The researchers found 86 percent of physicians had positive ratings, while 36 percent had highly positive ratings. They also rated written comments on the site, finding 3 percent extremely negative, 22 percent negative, 22 percent neutral, 39 percent positive and 14 percent extremely positive. --Read the full article on FierceHealthIT