Rising complaints against doctors due to changed patient expectations, researchers say

Numbers of complaints against doctors have risen as a result of broad cultural changes in society, including changing expectations, nostalgia for a “golden age” of healthcare, and a desire to raise grievances altruistically, researchers have said.

A study funded by the General Medical Council looked into the factors behind the increase in inquiries it received from members of the public about doctors’ fitness to practice.1 The number rose from 3615 in 2007 to 6154 in 2012.

A team of researchers led by Julian Archer, senior clinical lecturer at Plymouth University, concluded that …