In a recent study, over 2000 doctors were asked whether they ever lie to patients. Many member of the public were shocked by doctors' self-reported rates of untruthfulness.

Some 20 percent of doctors admitted they had not told patients the truth when a medical mistake occurred. Over 10 percent of doctors failed to disclose their own financial conflicts of interest. And, 15 percent had downplayed the seriousness of a patient's prognosis.

Is this indifference to the truth in the medical profession wrong? Not always, according to one professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

Lying about a medical mistake is never acceptable, according to the bioethicist. It is morally wrong, in that failing to disclose a medical error can be harmful to a patient's health. Of course, patients who later discover a medical mistake (and a failure to disclose it) will be able to bring a medical malpractice lawsuit, a further disincentive for doctors to lie.

What about financial conflicts of interest? Still, not OK to lie, says the University of Pennsylvania ethicist. Fortunately for doctors, once their patients know about a financial conflict of interest – such as a doctor's close ties to a particular drug company – they usually trust their doctors to detach themselves and make a good recommendation independent of anything they stand to gain.

When it comes to prognosis, however, the ethicist balks at the honesty-is-the-best-policy mantra. Sometimes, he says, painting a brighter picture of a patient's health condition can act as a placebo, actually improving outcomes. On the flip side, making things seem worse than they are may frighten at-risk patients away from unhealthy behavior. These white lies – told to benefit patients, not the doctors themselves – can be ethically acceptable, according to this expert.

Source: Medscape Today, "Lying to Patients: No Huge Ethical Failure, Says Bioethicist," Arthur L. Caplan, Feb. 10, 2012