Accused of poor bedside manner at an exam a radiologist never does
This account was submitted by a healthcare provider and de-identified before publication. Details that could identify a patient or practice have been removed, and it is shared with the provider’s consent.
As a diagnostic radiologist, I almost never meet patients face to face, so I was genuinely puzzled to see a one star review complaining about my "rude bedside manner" during an in person exam I do not perform.
There was no corresponding patient, and the entire scenario is inconsistent with how radiology actually works in my setting, but I cannot publicly say "you were never seen by me," because that denial is itself a disclosure I am not permitted to make.
So a review meant for someone else, or for no one at all, sits under my name and drags my average down, and when referring physicians or hospital committees look me up, the rating is there regardless of how nonsensical the underlying complaint is. It drove home how little the review systems understand about how medicine is actually practiced.
I reported the mismatch to Google, explaining that my role does not involve the kind of encounter described, and received the familiar automated non-answer.