Insights from the field…”On The Brink”

For our series, “On The Brink,” we reached out to physicians to gain their insight on the patient/physician relationship.  We lead with the following questions:

A close friend, who wishes to remain anonymous, shared his thoughts with us on the foundation of the patient-physician relationship. This physician is a well-respected C-Suite leader with a large, independent multi-specialty group practice. He is focused on the proliferation of the patient-centered medical home model, its contribution to quality care and by virtue, a restoration of the patient-physician relationship.

“The foundational factor in an ideal doctor-patient relationship is trust.  Trust allows the doctor-patient relationship to grow in every manner.  The patient knows that the physician is present and is willing and able to spring into action if the need arises.  From the physician perspective, the trusting patient leads to improved compliance with plans of care and therefore better health outcomes.  I have been fortunate throughout my career as a physician that my patients have trusted me and, as a result, we have walked together along the path of improved health.  The biggest barrier to establish a trusting doctor-patient relationship is accessibility.  The physician must make themselves accessible to their patients at all times.  Without this, a trusting relationship is difficult to develop.  We all seek that “go-to” person in our lives and for our patients that person is their physician.  Enhanced accessibility can be achieved in so many ways.  Modern communication has opened so many channels to be able to communicate with our patients.  Although traditional face-to-face visits will always be necessary, other methods of communication such as texting, email or web-based enhance accessibility.  I have used all these communication methods to enhance accessibility and, therefore, maintain trusting, healthy relationships with my patients.”

– Anonymous Contributor

If you as a physician have an insight around these four questions, please share with us and we will post your thoughts as well! Please following Reinvest Health on LinkedIn® and share your thoughts on our blog series