Abstract
Variations in clinical practice are commonly viewed as a sign of uneven quality of care and attributed to provider self-interest. However, patient preferences, physician practice patterns, and diagnostic and therapeutic uncertainty also cause variations. Greater attention to both doctor–patient interactions and limits to the available evidence might enable more effective assessment and improvement of health-care quality.
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Factors contributing to variation in clinical service delivery (PDF 56 kb)
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Crossing the quality chasm: a new health system for the 21st century
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Wallis, C., Naylor, C. & Detsky, A. Variation in clinical practice: forests and trees revisited. Nat Rev Urol 14, 511–512 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrurol.2017.102
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrurol.2017.102