Patients Around the World are Not Happy with Their Physicians, Feeling Disrespected, Hurried through Visits and Shut out of Treatment Decisions

SHELTON, Conn., July 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- New studies by SSI and The Research Intelligence Group (TRiG) show that two-thirds of patients around the world feel disrespected by their physicians.  Unclear communication is a prime reason for patients' dissatisfaction.  About a quarter of patients globally complain that physicians don't answer questions, don't involve them in treatment decisions and use medical terms with no explanation.  This appears to be a direct outcome of doctors not spending enough time with patients (44%).  About a third of patients also believe doctors show disrespect by not being punctual for appointments.  

Patients in China (55%) and Germany (51%) are particularly displeased with the limited time they get from their doctors.  Chinese patients are also far more likely than respondents in other countries to say their doctors don't explain medical terminology.  In contrast, in Australia (55%), France (48%) and the US (46%) patients are much more concerned about physicians' lack of punctuality.

"Clearly, people are not experiencing the level of service and respect they see in other arenas in their doctors' offices," says Chris DeAngelis, SSI's Vice President, Strategic Initiatives.  "When we look across 23 countries, we see that only 3 in 10 patients rate the care they receive from their doctors as excellent -- and less than half would recommend their physicians."

Around the world, patients' unwillingness to recommend their doctors is primarily due to long wait times (26%).  The one exception is China, where the number one reason patients would not recommend their doctors is "lack of medical expertise" (44%).  In fact, more than half of Chinese patients report their doctors need to improve both the instructions they give on follow-up care and the thoroughness of exams, areas only 12% of US patients and a fifth of patients globally see as problems.

"Although there are serious problems in the physician/patient relationship in all countries, Chinese respondents appear most unhappy with their doctors," says David Kweskin, Senior Vice President of TRiG.  "For example, while 43% of patients in Australia and about a third in the US, UK and Sweden rate the care their doctors provides as excellent, only 8% of Chinese respondents believe they get excellent care.  In addition, 62% of Chinese patients say that their doctors disrespect them compared to just 12% of US patients."

Only a Quarter of Patients Are Satisfied with Their Involvement in Treatment Decisions

The SSI and TRiG studies show that only a quarter of patients are happy with their involvement in treatment decisions.  Almost half of patients around the world (46%) say that they would be more satisfied if physicians would explain the treatment process and possible side effects in more detail.  Chinese respondents in particular (72%) are looking for more detailed explanations.  

Around the world, "listening to patient concerns" is the second most selected option (37%) when patients name the action that would increase their satisfaction with the treatment decision process.  Again, this was a particularly glaring issue among Chinese respondents (64%).  Other key improvements patients would like to see include physicians spending more time discussing options (32% globally) and greater availability of literature about specific medical conditions (23% globally).

Insights Drawn from Two Global Studies

The insights into the physician/patient relationship are drawn from two global studies.  The first is TRiG's online study of 22,581 adults in 23 countries -- executed through the World Independent Network of Market Research (WIN™), founded by TRiG.  The second -- designed to delve into the reasons behind the extensive TRiG findings -- is SSI's online study of 5,000+ adults in the US, UK, Germany, France, Japan, Australia, China, Singapore and Sweden. SSI offers extensive worldwide reach to support survey research through SSI Dynamix™, its dynamic sampling platform that links to its own global online panels, as well as Web sites, social media, affiliate partnerships and more.

About SSI...

Bringing together Survey Sampling International and Opinionology, SSI (www.surveysampling.com) is the premier global provider of world-leading sampling, data collection and data analytic solutions for survey research.  SSI reaches respondents in 72 countries via Internet, telephone, mobile/wireless and mixed access offerings.  Value-add services include questionnaire design consultation, programming and hosting, data processing and real-time reporting.  SSI serves more than 2,000 clients, including the top 50 research organizations. It has 30 offices serving clients around the world.

About The Research Intelligence Group...

TRiG (www.trig-us.com) is a major US -based primary market research consulting firm in the Healthcare industry providing global guidance to pharmaceutical and health related companies.  In particular, it focuses on the patient-physician relationships and understanding the patient journey…including both Rx and OTC brands.

SOURCE SSI

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