Up until about 50 years ago, patients trusted their doctors. They were trusted more than about any other group of professionals. You knew that if you needed urgent medical care, your doctor was there to help you night and day. There may not have been many treatments available, but at least you knew who was treating you and trusted his or her judgment. That trust has been declining in recent years. Furthermore, with the complexity in the number and potency of treatments in the past half-century or so, you often see more than one health care provider. This is really the case if you have a chronic illness and see a number of specialists. To be honest, you have no idea of whether they will all be helpful or not. All you know is that the first thing they want in any health provider’s office is that you have your health insurance and, if older, Medicare cards. If this is the main thing they seem to care about, is there any reason you should trust these guys? Generally, you may believe the answer is yes, but sometimes you may think no. Much of what you believe will depend upon the office staff. If you have to wait an hour or so to be seen by the doctor, he or she had better be good because no trust is being built between you and he. Sitting in the waiting room can further undermine the development of trust. You not only get to listen to the trials and sorrows of those around you, but you are bound to observe how the office staff reacts to patient’s questions. What you hear and see will influence how you later respond to the physician you see.

This is not good, is it? Yet, it describes health care today. Unless you and your health care provider each make an effort, trust is not going to occur on its own. Even the busiest doctor must make an effort to gain your trust. If she or he doesn’t, then you may be less willing to take whatever advice is given to you. On the other hand, the trust you have in your doctor is very valuable in helping you control your chronic condition. You must believe that what he is telling you will help.

The idea of building trust between patients and their health care providers has been the subject of much research and debate. It is a topic that everyone has an opinion about yet no one can define it. How do you build trust between you and your doctor? How can he or she building it in you? As everyone has an idea but no one an answer, what do you think?