Physician Specialty Differences in Unprofessional Behaviors Observed and Reported by Coworkers
Authors: Cooper William O. , Hickson Gerald B. , Dmochowski Roger R. , Domenico Henry J. , Barr Frederick E. , Emory Cynthia L. , Gilbert Jill , Hartman Gary E. , Lozon Marie M. , Martinez William , Noland Janesta , Webber Steven A. 
Published: June 2024

Importance

Because unprofessional behaviors are associated with patient complications, malpractice claims, and well-being concerns, monitoring concerns requiring investigation and individuals identified in multiple reports may provide important opportunities for health care leaders to support all team members.

Objective

To examine the distribution of physicians by specialty who demonstrate unprofessional behaviors measured through safety reports submitted by coworkers.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This retrospective cohort study was conducted among physicians who practiced at the 193 hospitals in the Coworker Concern Observation Reporting System (CORS), administered by the Vanderbilt Center for Patient and Professional Advocacy. Data were collected from January 2018 to December 2022.

Exposure

Submitted reports concerning communication, professional responsibility, medical care, and professional integrity.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Physicians’ total number and categories of CORS reports. The proportion of physicians in each specialty (nonsurgeon nonproceduralists, emergency medicine physicians, nonsurgeon proceduralists, and surgeons) who received at least 1 report and who qualified for intervention were calculated; logistic regression was used to calculate the odds of any CORS report.

Results

The cohort included 35 120 physicians: 18 288 (52.1%) nonsurgeon nonproceduralists, 1876 (5.3%) emergency medicine physicians, 6743 (19.2%) nonsurgeon proceduralists, and 8213 (23.4%) surgeons. There were 3179 physicians (9.1%) with at least 1 CORS report. Nonsurgeon nonproceduralists had the lowest percentage of physicians with at least 1 report (1032 [5.6%]), followed by emergency medicine (204 [10.9%]), nonsurgeon proceduralists (809 [12.0%]), and surgeons (1134 [13.8%]). Nonsurgeon nonproceduralists were less likely to be named in a CORS report than other specialties (5.6% vs 12.8% for other specialties combined; difference in percentages, −7.1 percentage points; 95% CI, −7.7 to −6.5 percentage points; P &amp;lt; .001). Pediatric-focused nonsurgeon nonproceduralists (2897 physicians) were significantly less likely to be associated with a CORS report than nonpediatric nonsurgeon nonproceduralists (15 391 physicians) (105 [3.6%] vs 927 [6.0%]; difference in percentages, −2.4 percentage points, 95% CI, −3.2 to −1.6 percentage points; P &amp;lt; .001). Pediatric-focused emergency medicine physicians, nonsurgeon proceduralists, and surgeons had no significant differences in reporting compared with nonpediatric-focused physicians.

Conclusions and Relevance

In this cohort study, less than 10% of physicians ever received a coworker report with a concern about unprofessional behavior. Monitoring reports of unprofessional behaviors provides important opportunities for health care organizations to identify and intervene as needed to support team members.