You Get What You Reward, Part One

You Get What You Reward,  Part One

By Steve Hayes, Director of Novus Medical Detox Center

    It is intuitive to most of us that when you reward someone for a certain behavior, it is likely that they will continue that behavior. Reward hard work and you will get more of it. Reward shoddy work and you will get more of that.

    Reward people who get good products and you will get more good products. Reward people who get poor products and then just "trying" is acceptable and society starts to decline.

    Of course, many times paying people for inferior products is just frustrating rather than dangerous. If the mechanic doesn't fix the bad starter on your car, the car might not start but you won't die. If the toaster you bought doesn't work, you just take it back and get another. These are irritating things that cost us time and sometimes money because someone didn't produce a good product. However, in some areas of your life, an inferior product can be much more serious.

    If you examine the way a product is rewarded, you will see that this principle applies in all areas of our lives. This is the first in a two part series discussing this principle applied to the practice of medicine. Next week we will apply this principle to the practices of the drug companies.

PRACTICE OF MEDICINE

    First, while there is science behind certain areas in medicine, there are other areas which are just "theorized" and, as in other aspects of life, it often comes down to the skill of the practitioner.

   Many of us have heard that the United States pays the most for medical care but often is rewarded with more medical problems than some other countries. Since this is the most prosperous country on Earth, even now, what explains this?

   The answer is to look at what is being rewarded. A surgeon friend of mine told me that the way to select a surgeon is to find out not only if the surgeon has a successful track record with the type of operation that you need, but also to find out how quickly his or her patients recover after surgery and how many complications they have. The ones who have the fastest recovery rate and the least complications are the more skilled.

   It would make sense that the more skilled surgeon should be rewarded more highly than the less skilled surgeon. What about other types of doctors? Do the doctors who actually locate and handle the cause of a patient's complaints receive more compensation than a doctor who just prescribes a pill to treat a symptom? A reward for better performance by any doctor is rarely the case. Insurance companies, HMO's and government insurance normally pay the same amount to the skilled and less skilled doctor. They reward the procedure and not the result. The majority of doctors are rewarded for "trying" but not for success. This is illogical because if the cause is found or the surgery is done right, then the insurers will have to pay less because the patient will not have to keep seeking medical help for the same situation.   

   To read on, click here.