K. R. Sethuraman
10 Credibility in health care The Shepherd's Boy and the Wolf: A shepherd boy used to derive great fun by fooling the people in the village. Often he used to pretend that a wolf was
attacking his flock of sheep and shout loudly, “Wolf! Wolf! Please help!� When the villagers in the vicinity came to his rescue, he used to laugh at them. Over time,
most villagers were aware of his pranks. Once a wolf really appeared on the scene
and when the boy cried for help, no one took notice. The wolf had its own way and devoured the sheep at its leisure.
A) Provider's credibility Acme Ultrasound Lab. became notorious for over diagnosing gall stones. Based on the
report from this Lab., many surgeons initially 'burnt their fingers' by operating on normal
gall bladders. Later they became more circumspect about reports from Acme lab. One
day, a technician of the Lab. was seized with acute abdominal pain. His scan, done in the
same Lab., apparently showed a gall stone. He was referred to a surgical unit. "Report
from Acme Lab? Forget it," said the surgeon and ordered a repeat scan at a centre with more credibility. Comments To gain acceptability, it is very important for diagnostic services to establish
credibility. Credibility is earned by providing high quality and reliable service over a long 34
