Overuse of Diagnostic Tests in Canada: A Critical Perspective

Abstract

In this commentary we describe the interplay between 1) contemporary popular and professional understandings of “risk” and “normality” in health and healthcare, and 2) the promotion by state and market forces of individual self-regulation of health. We draw upon the work of critical theorists who have described the relationship between risk, fear, and the notion of “normal” in health discourse to argue that these factors act, primarily via the popular media, to shape the discourse on, and overuse of, diagnostic tests in Canada.

Diagnostic Technology: Trends of Use and Availability in a 10-Year Period (2011–2020) among Sixteen OECD Countries

“…Lastly, the social context may have driven the culture of overuse regarding health and healthcare issues. This suggestion gains some support by critical perspective from Canada, under which the increasing demand for diagnostic tests seems to be the consequence of a multifaceted context that shapes the health beliefs, values, and behaviors of both patients and providers [25].…”