White Coats and Billboards: An Ethical Analysis of Surgeons’ Attitudes towards Physicians' Advertisements in a Middle-Income Setting

TL;DR

This study explores surgeons' attitudes toward physician advertising in a middle-income setting, finding generally favorable views despite ethical concerns.

Contribution

The study provides novel insights into surgeons' ethical perspectives on physician advertising in a specific cultural and economic context.

Findings

Most surgeons believe physician advertising enhances revenue and is ethically acceptable.

Younger surgeons view advertising as appropriate, while older surgeons consider it inappropriate.

Posting educational content online is seen as the best advertising method, while paying media is viewed as improper.

Abstract

Physician advertising is an important topic in the medical field. It is an important tool for attracting new patients, increasing awareness of medical services, and promoting the brand of physicians and medical centers. Therefore, this study investigated the surgeons' attitudes toward physician advertising.

This cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 136 surgeons selected from four teaching hospitals and two private hospitals in Tehran using convenience sampling. A researcher-made questionnaire was used to measure the surgeons' attitudes towards physician advertising. The survey included scales validated by a group of experts, and questionnaire validation methods were performed using a 5-point Likert scale. Data were analyzed using SPSS 18 software. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data, and inferential statistical tests, including chi-square, Fisher's exact test, and independent t-tests, were used to examine the associations.

The mean age of the study physicians was 36.99±0.9 years. Regarding the physicians' perceptions of advertising, 89% fully concurred that physician advertising enhanced their revenue. Conversely, 76.5% of physicians contended that advertising did not foster increased competition or enhance services. Most participants (84.6%) entirely refuted the assertion that advertising undermined the reputation of physicians. Furthermore, 86% expressed complete dissent about the prohibition of advertising by physicians. Seventy-five percent of surgeons said that paying the media to invite physicians to educational seminars was the most improper way for doctors to advertise. Conversely, 88.2 percent of them said that posting instructional information on their virtual profiles was the best approach. Statistical testing demonstrated that the judgment of the positive attitude toward physician advertising strongly correlated with age (p=0.002). The status of physician advertising in the community was deemed entirely proper for those under 30 years old, whereas it was deemed wholly inappropriate for those aged 30 to 45 and above.

The results of this study showed that physicians' attitudes towards advertisements by physicians in society were evaluated favorably in terms of ethical aspects and the dignity of the medical profession.

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