Let them know where YOU stand on this issue. Why Public Access to the NPDB Is Important 1. Patients need a full range of data in order to make informed decisions in choosing health care providers.
Consumers currently have more information when choosing cars than doctors.
Such information would protect hospitals and other corporate entities by enabling them to screen out negligent colleagues whose actions could expose the entity to liability. Thus, the NPDB should be viewed as a resource by the medical community rather than as a threat. Harvard studies estimate one percent of all hospitalized patients are injured or killed each year due to physician negligence. Yet only a fraction of substandard doctors are penalized by state medical boards. By combining state board actions with other data, the NPDB offers the best information available.