ASSESSMENT OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS OF PATIENTS
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DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29309/TPMJ/2008.15.02.2810Keywords:
..Abstract
Objective: To determine whether or not doctors assess the socio-economic
status of their patients in order to customize treatment and improve compliance. Design: A cross-sectional Setting:
Jinnah Hospital and Shalimar Hospital Lahore. Period: From March to June 2005 Methods & Material: Ninety-three
patients were included from each of the two randomly selected tertiary care hospitals (one public, one private) of
Lahore. Doctor-patient encounters were observed. Results: No assessment was made for 134/186(72%) patients.
51/186(27.4%) received an inadequate assessment. Only 01/186(0.5 %) patient received a thorough assessment of
his socioeconomic status. Doctors in the private hospital made better effort to assess the socioeconomic background
of the patient (albeit inadequately), compared to those in the public hospital (p: < 0.0001). Conclusion: Doctors should
be regular and meticulous in patients’ socioeconomic status assessment.
