Racial and ethnic disparities in perceptions of physician style and trust

Context: While pervasive racial and ethnic inequalities in access to care a nd health status have been documented, potential underlying causes, such as patients' perceptions of their physicians, have not been explored as thoro ughly. Objective: To assess whether a person's race or ethnicity is associated wit h low trust in the physician. Design, Setting, and Participants: Data were obtained from the 1996 through 1997 Community Tracking Survey, a nationally representative sample. Adults who identified a physician as their regular provider and had at least 1 ph ysician visit in the preceding 12 months were included (N = 32929). Main Outcome Measurer Patients' ratings of their satisfaction with the styl e of their physician and their trust in physicians. The Satisfaction With P hysician Style Scale measured respondents' perceptions of their physicians' listening skills, explanations, and thoroughness. The Trust in Physician S cale measured respondents' perceptions that their physicians placed the pat ients' needs above other considerations, referred the patient when needed, performed unnecessary tests or procedures, and were influenced by insurance rules. Results: After adjustment for socioeconomic and other factors, minority gro up members reported less positive perceptions of physicians than whites on these 2 conceptually distinct scales. Minority group members who lacked phy sician continuity on repeat clinic visits reported even less positive perce ptions of their physicians on these 2 scales than whites. Conclusions: Patients from racial and ethnic minority groups have less posi tive perceptions of their physicians on at least 2 important dimensions. Th e reasons for these differences should be explored and addressed.