Medical malpractice: the effect of doctor-patient relations on medical patient perceptions and malpractice intentions
- 1 October 2000
- journal article
- clinical trial
- Published by BMJ in Western Journal of Medicine
- Vol. 173 (4), 244-250
- https://doi.org/10.1136/ewjm.173.4.244
Abstract
Objective To examine the causal effects of doctor-patient relations and the severity of a medical outcome on medical patient perceptions and malpractice intentions in the event of an adverse medical outcome. Design Randomized between-subjects experimental design. Patients were given scenarios depicting interactions between an obstetric patient and her physician throughout the patient's pregnancy, labor, and delivery. Participants One hundred twenty-eight postpartum obstetric patients were approached for participation, of whom 104 completed the study. Main outcome measures Patients' perceptions of physician competence and intentions to file a malpractice claim. Results Positive physician communication behaviors increased patients' perceptions of physician competence and decreased malpractice claim intentions toward both the physician and the hospital. A more severe outcome increased only patients' intentions to sue the hospital. Conclusion These results provide empiric evidence for a direct, causal effect of the doctor-patient relationship on medical patients' treatment perceptions and malpractice claim intentions in the event of an adverse medical outcome.Keywords
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