Diverse patient perspectives on respect in healthcare: A qualitative study.
Mary Catherine Beach, Emily Branyon, Somnath Saha
PMID 28602565WHAT IT FOUND
Patients with diabetes or hypertension defined respect as being treated like a person and as an equal.
They valued being known, polite greetings, eye contact, and respectful handling of lateness; African American participants especially wanted providers to listen and trust their knowledge.
Key findings
01Patients across African American, Latino, and white groups defined respect as being treated like a person and being treated as an equal.
02African American participants emphasized being listened to and having their self-knowledge trusted, while Latino participants emphasized providers asking concrete questions about their condition.
03All groups valued being known as an individual, polite greetings and eye contact, and respectful handling of lateness.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study asked about patients' interactions with physicians, not with nurses, therapists, or other health professionals. It included only patients with diabetes or hypertension from one region of the United States, so it may not apply to other patients or settings. The paper reports 26 focus groups with 6 to 10 participants each but does not give a total number of participants. It describes themes from what patients said; it does not test whether communication training changes care or outcomes.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these themes as evidence that a communication training improves patient outcomes. The study described patient views of physician interactions; it did not test an intervention or show effects on care.