Physician ratings edge closer to the mainstream

Doctor ratings and reviews have gotten a bad name, especially from doctors. There are concerns about their validity and usefulness. And while I share these worries I also believe ratings and reviews are important and have the potential to become much more prominent and useful over time.I'm encouraged that some healthcare providers are reversing course and starting to publish ratings and reviews on their own websites. University of Utah is doing it, the Cleveland Clinic is considering following along, and others are also starting to think about it (Hospitals get into doc rating business).That's a good sign that patient reviews are going mainstream. We'll be even better informed once the sites include other information that's becoming available, such as the recently released Medicare claims data and complementary data on quality and cost from the private market, such as information that will be provided by the Robert Wood Johnson foundation-sponsored DOCTOR Project.—By healthcare consultant David E. Williams of the Health Business Group