Online Reviews: Are Patient Waivers a Good Idea?

Host: Michael Greenberg, MD Guest: James Speta, JD For years, people have turned to online review websites before deciding which restaurants or hotels most deserved their hard-earned dollars. Now, a new category of online reviews is growing, as more patients are posting their own editorials about their physicians. This trend towards patients reviewing their physicians online can be helpful at best, and inaccurate or harmful, at worst. Mr. Jim Speta, law professor at Northwestern University School of Law specializing in telecommunications and internet policy, discusses how physicians can protect themselves from defamatory or unfavorable internet reviews. Is it prudent to have patients sign waivers, barring them from writing online reviews, or are these waivers insignificant, thanks to the anonymity of the internet? What else can physicians do to protect themselves from any potential dangers of review websites?