Pressure from culture shifts, legislative policies, technology advancements and patient advocacy continues to evolve the nation's healthcare industry. The days of prescriptive physician care and no questions from patients are far in the past.
Transparency and collaboration mean patients receive care from a team, with physicians becoming more inclusive. Nurses and physician's assistants are gaining a stronger voice in patient care and patients themselves have access to vast resources of online tools to research and track their own care.
So, we wondered how these shifts are reflected in a measure of healthcare trust. How do consumers feel about their nurses and physicians compared to other business professionals?
In the first-ever Columbus Trust Study, we asked 400 randomly selected residents from the greater Columbus area to rank "honesty and ethical standards" of people among 16 selected occupations. In that study, nurses ranked second below only firefighters. Physicians ranked fourth with only farmers, nurses and firefighters above them.
In many ways, trust principles are based on leadership. In his book "The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership," John C. Maxwell points to three key qualities that enable leaders to build trust: competence, character and connection.
Our research uncovered many sources that cited these same core leadership principles in defining the essentials of trust. These three areas also proved relevant when we characterized respondents' opinions about the critical factors in selecting a new physician.
With these observations in mind, healthcare practices, hospitals and medical service providers must not only continue to focus on quality outcomes, but also elevate awareness of competence, honesty and referrals in their marketing programs and reputation management efforts.
As legislation impacts healthcare, reimbursements shift and technology tools evolve, providers must remember that it is not enough to rest on earned trust alone. Rather, they must also seek ways to grow healthcare trust with constituents to retain an edge in our constantly evolving healthcare delivery system.
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