Does It Cure? Or Does It Just Count?

Abstract

My Study Changed Nothing

I remember a study I published some years back on antibiotic prescribing patterns in our medical wards. We collected data for three months and found that over 60% of patients received antibiotics without a clear indication. I felt proud when it got published, but then I went back to work and nothing changed—I still prescribed antibiotics the same way, and so did my colleagues. The study sat on a shelf somewhere; it existed, it counted for my promotion, but it did not cure anyone. That was ten years ago, and I have published many studies since then, most of them cross-sectional, most costing nothing but time, and most getting me closer to my next promotion. Yet almost all of them changed absolutely nothing in my practice. I am not proud of this, but I am honest about it, and I know I am not alone.....