Most UK GPs Have Prescribed Placebos

Techmeology writes "In a survey of UK GPs, 97% said they'd recommended placebo treatments to their patients, with some doctors telling patients that the treatment had helped others without telling them that it was a placebo. While some doctors admitted to using a sugar pill or saline injection, some of the placebos offered had side effects such as antibiotic treatments used as placebos for viral infections."

Comments

Doctors need to really talk with their patients

[PolygamousRanchKid]

A family friend, an old and wise ear, nose and throat doctor, mentioned at a dinner party, that about 25% of his patients had an emotional problem, not a physical one. He lamented that younger doctors did not take time to ask patients questions about how their life, family and job status were going. The younger doctors would just try to prescribe pills too quickly, and refer the patient to a specialist, like himself. A neurologist and another doctor at the table agreed.

Of course, now many doctors have time constraints for patient visits imposed by insurance companies. So prescribing a placebo is the easier choice than really talking to the patients, and dealing with more paperwork, for an extended consultation.

That was in the US; I don't know how that is in the UK.