Data mining is nothing new. It's become a forced issue in medicine because data is seen as the gateway to everything--patient volumes, scheduling, payments, procedures, the daily flow of work.
Doctors have time-limited board certifications. In essence this is a good thing, to ensure that physicians maintain high standards and excellence in their fields by continually self-education and training, because medicine is an ever changing and advancing beast that requires life long study. I became board certified in 1998 and then I re-certified with additional at-home independent study and testing--which was quite lengthy--in 2008. However, in the past 5 years or so, Maintenance of Certification, or MOC, has become linked with endless self assessments on patient safety, patient communication, peer review, and patient/customer surveys which must be filled out and then analyzed by a third party in order for the physician to maintain board certification.
Sort of how you get online surveys from hotels or stores after you purchase something? The same thing is happening in medicine. How happy or glowing would a survey be from a patient who had to go on water only for 48hrs due to pancreatitis? Or a patient with cognitive dysfunction post-stroke? Silly rabbit, tricks are for kids. It doesn't matter. Give the patient a lollipop or a small token of gratitude and they'll be happy to fill out a survey.
The patient, or the peer/colleague filling out surveys, isn't asked about the correct diagnosis or treatment. The surveys' content hinges around the customer service experience-- the "pleasingness" of office decor, the friendliness and responsiveness of staff, the accessibility of parking, the phone call to the office to make the initial appointment, and even whether the electronic health record meshes well with the colleague's electronic health record, or inter-operability of electronic technology.
I recently filled out a survey for a colleague wishing to maintain board certification. I kept a copy for my records. The survey asked me to rate the friendliness of the office staff, how well was I able to get referrals from the doctors, the overall ease and convenience for patients to see that doctor--i.e. location, parking, payment policies (!). How the fudge is this relevant to the medical service provided? What about doctors in downtown New York or Miami, where there is zero parking? How about doctors that don't participate in any 3rd party payors, are they to be penalized for going cash only? BY THE AMERICAN BOARDS OF SPECIALTIES???
Silly rabbit, we have fallen down the hole.