The majority of patients who visited their primary care physicians (PCPs) over the past year say they are “very” or “extremely” satisfied with the care they received, according to a new studyfrom the Physicians Foundation. And interestingly, physician intelligence was not high on the list of qualities necessary for them to feel satisfied.
Nearly 80% of survey respondents who visited their doctor an average of 3.5 times over the prior 12 months justified their satisfaction by saying their PCPs offered personalized care, spent time with them, and were empathetic toward them.
Survey respondents, which included more than 2,000 adults, made specific statements about their PCPs such as “He/she cares about my health” and “He/she takes time to listen to me and address my concerns.” Patients most often based their satisfaction on their physicians’ customer service, followed by communication, treatment and diagnosis, and scheduling, with a PCP’s intelligence listed as one of the least common reasons for satisfaction.
“The cultivation of the patient-physician relationship remains one of the single most important aspects of delivering the highest quality of care to our patients,” says Walker Ray, MD, vice president of the Physicians Foundation and chairman of its research committee. “As regulatory and marketplace forces continue to alter the healthcare system, it is essential that these changes do not disrupt the strong bond between patients and their doctors.”
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For this survey, women aged at least 55 years who possess a college degree and have an annual income of at least $75,000 were most likely to have a PCP. Men aged at least 55 years were the most likely to be satisfied with their PCPs, according to the study, whereas women aged 18 to 34 years were most likely to say they were not very satisfied with their physicians. The study notes that confidence in a physician’s judgment and satisfaction seems to grow as the patient ages.
The survey also asked respondents their opinions about the direction of healthcare, and 53% had negative feedback. Women and patients aged more than 55 years were the most pessimistic, the study reports.
“Patients and physicians share strong concerns about the future of the U.S. healthcare system,” says Lou Goodman, PhD, president of the Physicians Foundation and chief executive officer of the Texas Medical Association. “Our recent survey of nearly 14,000 physicians found that only 23% of physicians are somewhat or very optimistic about the future of the medical profession. Considering that both patients and physicians are expressing such a startling level of frustration and uncertainty about the health system, more needs to be done to ensure the sustainability and access of quality patient care in America.”
A great deal of patient pessimism also exists about insurance and pharmaceutical companies, according to survey results, with roughly 75% of respondents placing the blame for increasing healthcare costs on their shoulders. More than half of the people surveyed say they think insurance and pharmaceutical companies negatively affect the quality of care.
Blame for rising healthcare costs also is spread to patients who don’t take responsibility for their own health (64%), malpractice insurance costs (62%), the government (59%) and hospitals (53%).
The survey was conducted by Harris Interactive for the Physicians Foundation in July 2012. The foundation is a non-profit group that aims to advance the work of practicing physicians and help facilitate the delivery of healthcare to patients.