Doctors often not discussing risk factors with patients

(HealthDay)—Patients report that doctors are routinely not discussing known risk factors for common causes of death, according to a survey conducted by ImagineMD.

ImagineMD conducted a survey of 3,000 patients to examine whether doctors adequately address the leading causes of preventable death in America with their patients. Respondents were categorized by age: 15 to 44 years old and 45 to 64 years old.

According to the survey results, just 9 percent of respondents in the younger age group reported that their doctors have raised the subject of opioids with them. Even fewer respondents reported that their physicians spoke with them about preventable road traffic issues, like wearing a seat belt (8 percent) or distracted driving (5 percent). Among the older respondents, smoking was discussed in just 37 percent of conversations, alcohol in 27 percent, and stress in 40 percent.

"The reason for this is as obvious as it is distressing: primary care doctors in fee-for-service medicine simply have too little time to spend with patients," writes the author of a blog post reporting on the survey.

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