I was taken aback this morning when I saw in my inbox a message from Angie’s List announcing the addition of medical professions to their database of consumer service provider reviews, even going as far as to offer member incentives for writing reviews.
…Angie’s List members can now submit reports on health care providers, like dentists, primary care physicians, cosmetic surgeons, chiropractors, oncologists, pediatricians and dozens of other specialties. We’re also collecting reports on hospitals, pharmacies, insurance providers and more. See the full list.
and
Sick service or a clean bill of health?
We’ve received a lot of requests from members over the years about rating healthcare services. At first we thought, “we do homes, not health.”
But then we kept thinking about it, and we realized that Angie’s List has become a well-respected destination for consumers around the country to find highly rated service companies. Why shouldn’t we extend the offering to services even closer to home?
The short answer – we should. The long answer – it will take time for these categories to become as well-stocked as roofing, plumbing or HVAC. But you can help by adding reports about everyone from your allergist to your urologist. See a full list of categories or start reporting now.
I’ve been a big fan of Angie’s List ever since I bought our condo a little while back and needed numerous recommendations for HVAC repair, movers, hardwood flooring, carpet, locksmiths, and even travel agents. These recommendations proved to be invaluable, as I have yet to be dissatisfied with any of the work I’ve had done as a result. Angie’s List is a true asset in these areas.
Crossing into healthcare, however, Angie’s List enters a very gray area as far as the actual review process and the whole idea altogether. To date, if a consumer has a dispute with a general contractor over a hardwood flooring project, the consumer can write a negative review. The contractor can then write a response to the review and can ultimately “resolve” the issue, though the negative mark still remains on the report card to one extent or another. This check and balance mechanism probably greatly reduces incidences of the occasional irate consumer who tries to “get back” at a contractor over something that might not have actually been a big deal. Healthcare providers, on the other hand, are governed by federal law, specifically the HIPAA privacy law, which ultimately leaves us defenseless against negative publicity. If a patient complains on Angie’s List that he or she didn’t like the implant I placed, by law I cannot comment on the situation because I am bound by HIPPA. In fact, I cannot even acknowledge publicly that a person is even an actual patient of mine. I’m sure the stickiness of the situation is obvious.
While great for professions that are not bound by privacy laws, I feel Angie’s List has no business including healthcare providers in their database. Stick with everything else. There’s plenty of other areas to keep us all busy. I’m interested to see where this goes.
