Trust communication in patient-physican relationship

The subject of this thesis is ?Trust Communication in Patient-Physician Relationship?.Within the framework of the thesis a research was performed aiming to define the level of trust ofthe infertile patients in communication with their physicians in Akdeniz University Faculty ofMedicine Hospital?s Obstetrics and Gynecology Section Infertility and Assisted Reproduction(Tube Baby) Unit and to determine the factors affecting this trust. The thesis also aims to providesome proposals to improve trust communication between patients and physicians.Towards these aims, the literature was examined and a pre-research was designed in orderto determine the high reliability questions. A questionnaire was developed in compliance with theliterature and this questionnaire was applied to the patients in Akdeniz University Faculty ofMedicine Hospital?s Obstetrics and Gynecology Section?s policlinic. An alpha test wasperformed in order to determine the high reliability questions, and after eliminating and revisingsome questions the questionnaire was finalized. Then, this final version of the questionnaire wasapplied to 200 patients in Akdeniz University Faculty of Medicine Hospital?s Obstetrics andGynecology Section Infertility and Assisted Reproduction (Tube Baby) Unit.The findings indicate a score of slightly above the medium level trust for this study. Thepatients in our study have an average of 3,77 ± 0,58 trust level (out of 5) towards their physicians.This reveals that the patients applying to Akdeniz University Faculty of Medicine Hospital?sAssisted Reproduction Unit have a trust slightly above the medium level for their physicians. Thefindings also reveled that there are no statistically significant relationships between the trust leveland other socio-demographic variables such as age, sex and income. However, in compliancewith the literature, our study revealed that ?the duration of relationship with the physician? hadbeen determined as an important factor affecting the trust level.