Doctor Patient Relationship

Introduction and Literature Review

The concept of patient satisfaction is not new. Patients are one of the main stake holders

among the ever expansive modern world of medicine. A wealth of medical literature supports the

notion that there have been unprecedented shifts in the traditional “Doctor-Patient” relationship.

Patient satisfaction forms an essential component of many policy level decisions. Changes in

patient care trends have been seen in developing countries recently. Patient satisfaction is a

complex, multidirectional issue that needs to be approached from several different angles.

Service quality is an abstract and elusive construct. Its intangible, variable and

inseparable characteristic is unique to services. Service quality has been increasingly identified

as a key factor in differentiating services and building competitive advantage. Therefore,

understanding, measuring and improving quality is a formidable challenge for all organizations

since they compete to some degree on the basis of service. More and more executives in

manufacturing and service businesses are interested in service quality and believe that high

quality pays off, creates true customers and leads to efficiencies. Health care services have a

distinct position among other services due to the highly involving and risky nature of services

and the general lack of expertise possessed by consumers.

The ultimate objective of any doctor-patient communication is to improve the patient's

health and medical care. Studies on doctor-patient communication have demonstrated patient

discontent even when many doctors considered the communication adequate or even

excellent. Doctors tend to overestimate their abilities in communication. reported that 75% of the

orthopedic surgeons surveyed believed that they communicated satisfactorily with their patients,

but only 21% of the patients reported satisfactory communication with their doctors. Patient
surveys have consistently shown that they want better communication with their doctors. The

principles of patient-centered medicine date back to the ancient Greek school of Cos. However,

patient-centered medicine has not always been common practice. For example, in the 1950s to

1970s, most doctors considered it inhumane and detrimental to patients to disclose bad news

because of the bleak treatment prospect for cancers. The medical model has more recently

evolved from paternalism to individualism.