Obstetricians' choice of cesarean delivery in ambiguous cases: is it influenced by risk attitude or fear of complaints and litigation?

American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Volumn 200, Issue 1, 2009, Pages 48.e1-48.e8

  Fuglenes, Dorthe ^a   Øian, Pål ^b   Kristiansen, Ivar Sønbø ^a,c  

^a UNIVERSITY OF OSLO   (Norway)

^b UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL OF NORTH NORWAY   (Norway)

^c UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN DENMARK   (Denmark)

Author keywords

cesarean section; fear of litigation; maternal request; risk attitude

Indexed keywords

ADULT; AGED; ARTICLE; CESAREAN SECTION; FEMALE; HEALTH PERSONNEL ATTITUDE; HUMAN; HUMAN EXPERIMENT; LAW SUIT; MALE; MALPRACTICE; MEDICAL SPECIALIST; NORWAY; PRIORITY JOURNAL;

EID: 58049155725     PISSN: 00029378     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.ajog.2008.07.021     Document Type: Article

References (32)

1. Kolås T., Hofoss D., Daltveit A.K., et al. Indications for cesarean deliveries in Norway. Am J Obstet Gynecol 188 (2003) 864-870
2. Savage W. The rising caesarean section rate: a loss of obstetric skill?. J Obstet Gynaecol 27 (2007) 339-346
3. Wax J.R., Cartin A., Pinette M.G., and Blackstone J. Patient choice cesarean: an evidence-based review. Obstet Gynecol Surv 59 (2004) 601-616
4. Prosser L.A., Kuntz K.M., Bar-Or A., and Weinstein M.C. The relationship between risk attitude and treatment choice in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis. Med Decis Making 22 (2002) 506-513
5. Holtgrave D.R., Lawler F., and Spann S.J. Physicians' risk attitudes, laboratory usage, and referral decisions: the case of an academic family practice center. Med Decis Making 11 (1991) 125-130
6. Allison J.J., Kiefe C.I., Cook E.F., Gerrity M.S., Orav E.J., and Centor R. The association of physician attitudes about uncertainty and risk taking with resource use in a Medicare HMO. Med Decis Making 18 (1998) 320-329
7. Fiscella K., Franks P., Zwanziger J., et al. Risk aversion and costs, a comparison of family physicians and general internists. J Fam Prac 49 (2007) 7-12
8. Franks P., Williams G.C., Zwansiger J., Mooney C., and Sorbero M. Why do physicians vary so widely in their referral rates?. J Gen Intern Med 15 (2000) 163-165
9. Pearson S.D., Goldman L., Orav J., et al. Triage decisions for emergency department patients with chest pain: do physicians' risk attitudes make the difference?. J Gen Intern Med 10 (1995) 557-564
10. O'Leary C.M., de Klerk N., Keogh J., et al. Trends in mode of delivery during 1984-2003: can they be explained by pregnancy and delivery complications?. BJOG 114 (2007) 855-864
11. Habiba M., Kaminski M., Da Frè M., et al. Caesarean section on request: a comparison of obstetricians' attitudes in eight European countries. BJOG 113 (2006) 647-656
12. Localio A.R., Lawthers A.G., Bengtson J.M., et al. Relationship between malpractice claims and cesarean delivery. JAMA 269 (1993) 366-373
13. Symon A. Litigation and defensive clinical practice: quantifying the problem. Midwifery 16 (2000) 8-14
14. Ghetti C., Chan B.K.S., and Guise J.M. Physicians' responses to patient-requested cesarean delivery. Birth 31 (2004) 280-284
15. Kwee A., Cohlen B.J., Kanhai H., Bruinse H.W., and Visser G.H.A. Caesarean section on request: a survey in the Netherlands. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 113 (2004) 186-190
16. Jackson D.N. Jackson personality inventory-revised manual. [CD-ROM] (2004), Sigma Assessment Systems Inc, Port Huron (MI)
17. Baldwin R.L., Green J.W., Shaw J.L., et al. Physician risk attitudes and hospitalization of infants with bronchiolitis. Acad Emerg Med 12 (2005) 142-146
18. Katz D.A., Williams G.C., Brown R.L., et al. Emergency physicians' fear of malpractice in evaluating patients with possible acute cardiac ischemia. Ann Emerg Med 46 (2005) 525-533
19. Robinson G. Do general practitioners' risk-taking propensities and learning styles influence their continuing medical education preferences?. Med Teach 24 (2002) 71-78
20. Braspenning J., and Sergeant J. General practitioners' decision making for mental health problems: outcomes and ecological validity. J Clin Epidemiol 47 (1994) 1365-1372
21. Jones T.V., Gerrity M.S., and Earp J. Written case simulations: do they predict physicians' behavior?. J Clin Epidemiol 43 (1990) 805-815
22. Norman G.R., and Feightner J.W.A. Comparison of behaviour on simulated patients and patients management problems. Med Educ 15 (1981) 26-32
23. Harrison M., Young J.M., Butow P., Salkeld G., and Solomon M.J. Is it worth the risk?. A systematic review of instruments that measure risk propensity for use in the health setting. Soc Sci Med 60 (2005) 1385
24. Chauhan S.P., Chauhan V.B., Cowan B.D., Hendrix N.W., Magann E.F., and Morrison J.C. Professional liability claims and central association of obstetricians and gynecologists members: myth versus reality. Am J Obstet Gynecol 192 (2005) 1820-1826
25. Chervenak J.L. Overview of professional liability. Clin Perinatol 34 (2007) 227-232
26. Ogburn T., Espey E., Autry A., Leeman L., and Bachofer S. Why obstetrics/gynecology, and what if it were not an option?. a survey of resident applicants. Am J Obstet Gynecol 197 (2007) 538
27. Savage W., and Francome C. British consultants' attitudes to caesareans. J Obstet Gynaecol 27 (2007) 354-359
28. Jørstad R.G., Thomsen M.W., Foyn T., Hagen B., Øian P., and Eraker R. Norsk Pasientskadeerstatning, en kilde til læring [The Norwegian Patient Injury Compensation-a source of learning]. Tidsskr Nor Laegeforen 127 (2007) 760-762
29. Infoplease.com: all the knowledge you need. 2000-2007 Pearson Education. Available at: http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0005067.html. Accessed Jan. 25, 2008.
30. WrongDiagnosis.com: medical malpractice and childbirth. 2000-2007 Adviware Pty Ltd. Available at: http://wrongdiagnosis.com/c/childbirth/malpractice.htm. Accessed Jan. 25, 2008.
31. Farrell S.A. The choice of elective cesarean delivery in obstetrics: a voluntary survey of Canadian health care professionals. Int Urogynecol J 16 (2005) 378-383
32. Gonen R. Obstetricians' opinions regarding patient choice in cesarean delivery. Obstet Gynecol 99 (2002) 577-580