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OP: You need more doctor data. Given you have surgeon [x] what are odds of a successful surgery with [x]. THIS is the guarded secret -- yet the most valuable.

OP: You need more doctor data. Given you have surgeon [x] what are odds of a successful surgery with [x]. THIS is the guarded secret -- yet the most valuable. If you have medical data (or want to be a cofounder) please email me :ransom1538 at gmail.com -- a prototype: https://www.opendoctor.io https://www.opendoctor.io to find out data to this very question.

mikecsh 10y ago
In the UK, under the NHS, summary data regarding a surgeons performance is published [1]. There is an interesting debate about whether this is a good thing or not. One argument is that it improves transparency and allows patients to make a better, more informed choice of who operates on them. The counterargument is that most patients don't understand that there is an element of probability distribution involved. Perhaps more importantly, if the thought process of a surgeon changes from "performing surgeries to the best of my abilities and knowing I will lose my job if I am dangerous" to "all my results are published for public scrutiny so I need to have a survival rate as close to 100% as possible as that is all the public comprehend" may lead to surgeons only being willing to take on cases which are very likely to be successful, as taking a difficult or last-chance case will have a high probability of mortality and therefore will affect their numbers. This would be a loss for many people. I don't know if any research has been done to determine whether that has borne out or not though. [1] https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/Consultants/performanceindicators?resultsViewId=1018 https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/Consultants/performanceind...
pragone 10y ago
> Given you have surgeon [x] what are odds of a successful surgery with [x]. THIS is the guarded secret -- yet the most valuable. What is a successful surgery? One with the least complications? No complications? Shortest recovery time? Best return to function? Best outcome for that particular patient? It's not an easy question to answer.
tunneylax20 10y ago
this is pretty cool. where did you pull this data from? is it publicly available?

mikecsh 10y ago

In the UK, under the NHS, summary data regarding a surgeons performance is published [1]. There is an interesting debate about whether this is a good thing or not. One argument is that it improves transparency and allows patients to make a better, more informed choice of who operates on them. The counterargument is that most patients don't understand that there is an element of probability distribution involved. Perhaps more importantly, if the thought process of a surgeon changes from "performing surgeries to the best of my abilities and knowing I will lose my job if I am dangerous" to "all my results are published for public scrutiny so I need to have a survival rate as close to 100% as possible as that is all the public comprehend" may lead to surgeons only being willing to take on cases which are very likely to be successful, as taking a difficult or last-chance case will have a high probability of mortality and therefore will affect their numbers. This would be a loss for many people. I don't know if any research has been done to determine whether that has borne out or not though. [1] https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/Consultants/performanceindicators?resultsViewId=1018 https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/Consultants/performanceind...

pragone 10y ago

> Given you have surgeon [x] what are odds of a successful surgery with [x]. THIS is the guarded secret -- yet the most valuable. What is a successful surgery? One with the least complications? No complications? Shortest recovery time? Best return to function? Best outcome for that particular patient? It's not an easy question to answer.

tunneylax20 10y ago

this is pretty cool. where did you pull this data from? is it publicly available?