Implicit discount rates of vascular surgeons in the management of abdominal aortic aneurysms.
A growing empirical literature has investigated attitudes towards discounting of health benefits with regard to social choices of life-saving and health-improving measures and individuals' time preferences for the management of their own health. In this study, the authors elicited the time preferences of vascular surgeons in the context of management of small abdominal aortic aneurysms, for which the choice between early elective surgery and watchful waiting is not straightforward. They interviewed 25 of a random sample of 30 Swedish vascular surgeons. Considerable variation in the time preferences was found in the choices between watchful waiting and surgical intervention among the otherwise very homogeneous group of surgeons. The discount rates derived ranged from 5.3% to 19.4%. The median discount rate (10.4%) is similar to those usually reported for social choices concerning life-saving measures. The surgeons who were employed in university hospitals had higher discount rates than did their colleagues in county and district hospitals.
Enemark
U
U
Center for Health and Social Policy, Odense University, Denmark.
Lyttkens
C H
CH
Troëng
T
T
Weibull
H
H
Ranstam
J
J
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D017544:Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal / Q000601:surgery*; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003661:Decision Support Techniques; D003663:Decision Trees; D017558:Elective Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000401:mortality; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology*; D011365:Professional Practice Location; D019057:Quality-Adjusted Life Years; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors; D014656:Vascular Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000401:mortality