Breaking News English

The quality of [medical / medic] care you receive from doctors could [dependence / depend] on the time of the day you visit a hospital or clinic. A study from the University of Pennsylvania in the USA discovered a [significance / significant] difference in the decision-making of physicians at different times [for / of] the day. The study concluded [that / what] a patient's chances of getting screened for cancer were a lot [heighten / higher] in the morning than they were in the [late / lately] afternoon. Researchers investigated the numbers of women [assigns / assigned] to breast cancer screening throughout the day. They found that in the hour [following / followed] 8am, doctors ordered screenings for 64 per cent of women who were eligible for tests. This figured [dropped / drooped] to 48 per cent at 5pm.

The researchers said the [programme / progressive] reduction in assigned screenings as the day progressed could be [due / as] to "decision fatigue". This is a kind of [mentally / mental] burn-out that interrupts a person's ability to effectively make [decision / decisions] the longer they work. Dr. Mitesh Patel said: "Our new study adds to the [growing / growth] evidence that the time of the day and decision fatigue impacts [patience / patient] care." Researcher Esther Hsiang agreed, saying: "We believe that the downward [spiral / trend] of ordering screenings may be the [result / because] of decision fatigue, where people may be [less / few] inclined to consider a new decision after they've been making them all day. It may also stem from overloaded clinicians getting behind as the day [regresses / progresses] ."