It can be nerve-wracking to have no control over what patients post about your practice on sites, such as Yelp and RateMDs. But a recent study from the University of California confirms other reports that the majority of online reviews are favorable toward physicians. In this particular analysis of 712 reviews of 455 doctors in four cities (Chicago, New York, Atlanta and San Francisco), researchers found that 63 percent of the reviews were positive and recommended the physician.

Most instructive to doctors, however, is the content of the reviews that were negative. According to researchers, patients were generally not critical of the physician's own expertise or bedside manner but of administrative shortcomings, such as inadequate parking, rude staff, difficulty making appointments and excessive wait time.

Among specific reviews, 69 percent included positive comments about a physician's interpersonal manner, while 80 percent praised the doctor's technical competence, according to the study. On the other hand, systems-issues comments, such as those related to staff professionalism, were 60 percent positive and 40 percent negative.

While Urmimala Sarkar, an assistant professor at University of California San Fransisco Division of General Internal Medicine and the Center for Vulnerable Populations at San Francisco General Hospital, recommended doctors take specific postings with a grain of salt, she also urged them to take advantage of having access to such unfiltered information about how they might improve their practices. "To the extent that people are revealing specific information that is relevant to you, the reviews are useful," said Sarkar.

To learn more:
- read the article from the University of California San Francisco
- read the abstract from the Journal of General Internal Medicine

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