The practice orientations of physicians and patients: the effect of doctor-patient congruence on satisfaction

This study investigated the extent to which the individual orientations of physicians and patients and the congruence between them are associated with patient satisfaction. A survey was mailed to 400 physicians and 1020 of th eir patients. All respondents filled out the Patient-Practitioner Orientati on Scale, which measures the roles that doctors and patients believe each s hould play in the course of their interaction. Patients also rated their sa tisfaction with their doctors. Among patients, we found that females and th ose who were younger, more educated, and healthier were significantly Fore patient-centered. However, none of these variables were significantly relat ed to satisfaction. Among physicians, females were more patient-centered, a nd years in practice was related to satisfaction and orientation in a non-l inear fashion. The congruence data indicated that patients were highly sati sfied when their physicians either had a matching orientation or were more patient-centered. However, patients whose doctors were not as patient-cente red were significantly less satisfied. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ireland Lt d. All rights reserved.