LSAT 8 | Section 1 | Logical Reasoning: Q1

LR Question 1 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Of all of the surgeons practicing at the city hospital…

QUESTION TYPE: Paradox

FACTS: The chief surgeon has the worst death rate in the hospital. Yet hospital administrators say he is the best surgeon.

ANALYSIS: It would make sense that the chief surgeon gets the hardest cases. Those will have a high death rate even if a surgeon is skilled.

___________

1. This is a very tempting choice. If the hospital administrators are merely offering a biased portrait however, it’s hard to go from worst to best. Bias usually presents “good” as “excellent.” It’s hard for bias to completely ignore relevant facts. Answer D offers a better explanation.
2. This explains how the surgeon was appointed but not why his reputation is so high despite his low success rate.
3. This tells us about the chief surgeon’s job duties but it doesn’t explain anything about his performance.
4. CORRECT. This does it. Lesser surgeons might have an even higher death rate than the chief surgeon.
5. That shows that the predecessor was worse but it doesn’t explain why the administrators think the chief is excellent. He still has the worst record in the hospital.

Recap: The question begins with “Of all of the surgeons practicing at the city hospital”. It is a Paradox question. Learn how to master LSAT Paradox questions on the LSAT Logical Reasoning question types page.