According to a survey published in the February issue of Consumer Reports, they polled 39,000 subscribers and 335 primary care physicians selected at random from a national list.

Patients said that their physicians failed to disclose the cost of medications or office visits, and one-third said that their physicians failed to discuss the side effects of treatments. About 19% of patients said that they could not make appointments with their physicians within one week, and 7% said that their physicians did not return test results promptly, the survey found.

Among physicians, 59% said that patients did not follow their advice "completely," and one-third said that many of their patients are not specific about their symptoms, the survey found. A number of physicians also said that patients do not make appointments as early as they should, according to the survey. About 40% of patients said that they researched information about their conditions on the Internet, and 41% of physicians said that such patients were misinformed, the survey found. According to the survey, almost 80% of physicians said that their patients asked for prescription drugs they saw advertised on television, and 40% said that they oppose direct-to-consumer advertisements for medications.