Attitudes of first-year medical students towards the doctor patient relationship.

ABSTRACT

In recent years, medical schools all over the world have instituted a variety of curricula to teach communication skills, professional values and ethics to medical students. Studies on the student attitudes towards doctor-patient relationships are lacking in Nepal. The present study was carried out to obtain information on the sharing and caring dimensions of the doctor-patient relationship and note any association of the dimensions with the demographic characteristics of the respondents. The study was carried out among first year students of the Manipal College of Medical Sciences, Pokhara, Nepal in August 2003 using the patient-practitioner orientation scale. One hundred and sixty-five students participated. The mean +/- SD total, caring and sharing scores were 3.71 +/- 0.48, 3.51 +/- 0.55 and 3.91 +/- 0.62 respectively. Students whose first degree relative was a doctor had higher sharing score compared to those without doctor relatives. Female students had higher scores. Students had a positive attitude towards the doctor-patient relationship. Our scores were lower than those reported previously. Further studies are required and the results obtained will be helpful in designing a doctor-patient relationship course for Nepal.