Prior studies have shown that patient trust in their physician is associated with better health outcomes and lower levels of emotional distress. Patients who have low levels of trust in their physician are less satisfied and less likely to adhere to their physician recommendations. As such, there is a need to better understand factors related to patient trust in their physician. Purpose: To understand whether patient awareness of a surgeon's personal background improves patient trust in their surgeon.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
SUPPORTIVE_CARE
Masking
SINGLE
Experimental group will receive an information sheet with their surgeon's educational and personal background. Personal Background * Favorite outdoor activity/form of exercise * Favorite hobby * Family information (children, pets) * Single sentence about how the clinician conceptualizes excellent patient care
Wake Forest -Trust in Physician score
Before the clinic visit, the research assistant will give patients a sheet that gives them info on their surgeon. Control group will receive an information sheet with only their surgeon's educational background. Experimental group will receive an information sheet with their surgeon's educational and personal background. Immediately after the clinic visit, the research assistant will ask patients to complete Wake Forest Trust in physician survey. Response choices (coding) are: Strongly Agree (5), Agree (4), Neutral (3), Disagree (2), Strongly Disagree (1). Responses are summed (range 5-25) with higher scores indicating more trust.
Time frame: Immediately after the clinic visit, patients are given the survey to complete.
Jefferson Scale of Perceived Physician Empathy
Before the clinic visit, the research assistant will give patients a sheet that gives them info on their surgeon. Control group will receive an information sheet with only their surgeon's educational background. Experimental group will receive an information sheet with their surgeon's educational and personal background. Immediately after the clinic visit, the research assistant will ask patients to complete the Jefferson Scale of Patient Perceptions of Physician Empathy. Each item is answered on a 7-point Likert-type scale (from Strongly Disagree = 1 to Strongly Agree = 7), with higher score indicating more empathy.
Time frame: Immediately after the clinic visit, patients are given the survey to complete.
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