Profiles of poor performers in medical practice : models for prevention and intervention

Recent research on evidence-based medical practice has highlighted trends and patterns among medically qualified poor performers, and has produced a profile of risky performers in the profession. Drawing on empirically derived examples from medical practitioners based on reviews of recent government-ordered inquiries of hospitals in Australia, behaviours and practices that increase the risk of poor performance are identified. These findings permit development of a preventive approach to intervene before the problematic performance generates complaints to regulatory bodies. Preventive risk assessment measures to serve the interests of patients and the public are reviewed. These findings will be of interest to individual practitioners, and to those who regulate the profession, such as medical associations, medical councils and medical defense unions.