Around a third of gastroenterologists admit to having bias toward certain groups of patients and 5 percent admit that their bias affects the treatment they offer, according to Medscape Gastroenterology Lifestyle Report 2016: Bias and Burnout.
But, what affects bias?
Here are four statistics on political leanings and patient bias among GI physicians:
• Forty-three percent of gastroenterologists who defined themselves as socially conservative but fiscally liberal reported biases
• Around 38 percent of GI physicians who reported being fiscally conservative but socially liberal admitted to patient bias
• Thirty-six percent of gastroenterologists who defined themselves as fiscally and socially liberal reported biases
• Only 23 percent of GI physicians who reported being socially and fiscally conservative admitted to having biases