Physician-Patient Relationships: What Do Doctors Say?

A literature search of the medical literature dealing with physician-patient relationships is reported. Articles published between 1983 and 1989 were examined to discover problems in relationships as defied by physicians and motivations for physicians to improve relationships with patients. Articles related to relationships with patients constitute less than 1% of the medical literature. A content analysis of the articles revealed a number of topics that provide a fertile field of research for communication scholars who are interested in working with physicians and medical students to improve their communication skills. The articles also revealed a variety of reasons why physicians should attend to relationships with patients.