Specific Disease Knowledge as Predictor of Susceptibility to Availability Bias in Diagnostic Reasoning: a Randomized Controlled Experiment.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Bias in reasoning rather than knowledge gaps has been identified as the origin of most diagnostic errors. However, the role of knowledge in counteracting bias is unclear.

Objective

To examine whether knowledge of discriminating features (findings that discriminate between look-alike diseases) predicts susceptibility to bias.

Design

Three-phase randomized experiment. Phase 1 (bias-inducing): Participants were exposed to a set of clinical cases (either hepatitis-IBD or AMI-encephalopathy). Phase 2 (diagnosis): All participants diagnosed the same cases; 4 resembled hepatitis-IBD, 4 AMI-encephalopathy (but all with different diagnoses). Availability bias was expected in the 4 cases similar to those encountered in phase 1. Phase 3 (knowledge evaluation): For eac

SUBMITTER: Mamede S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7947124 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature