Of course it can – and expect this to happen routinely once P4P is instituted:
A diagnosis which was not really the primary medical issue suddenly becomes number one because of dollars, and a lack of documentation rather than lack of care ends up being construed as a lack in quality. In response to this, hospitals are placing an enormous effort on documentation (“buffing the chart”). Not necessarily a bad thing, but how much of that really benefits patients?
(via a reader tip)
