Physicians' trust in healthcare organization leadership declined during the COVID-19 pandemic among 30 percent of survey respondents, but increased or stayed the same among the rest, according to research conducted for the American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation by NORC at the University of Chicago.
The research, released May 21, surveyed a non-probability sample of 600 physicians between Dec. 29, 2020, and Feb. 5, 2021. It also surveyed a probability-based sample of 2,069 U.S. adults between Dec. 29, 2020, and Jan. 26, 2021, with oversamples for Black, Hispanic and Asian respondents.
Nine findings:
1. Thirty percent of physicians surveyed said the pandemic decreased their level of trust in healthcare organization leadership.
2. Eighteen percent of physicians surveyed said the pandemic increased their level of trust in healthcare organization leadership, while 52 percent said their trust remained the same.
3. Thirty percent of physicians surveyed said the pandemic decreased their level of trust in U.S. healthcare.
4. Forty-one percent of physicians surveyed said the pandemic increased their level of trust in fellow physicians.
5. Thirty-seven percent of physicians surveyed said the pandemic increased their level of trust in nurses.
6. In general, most physicians surveyed (94 percent) reported trusting fellow physicians within their practice.
7. Sixty-six percent of physicians surveyed said they generally trust their healthcare organization leaders and executives.
8. Seventy-eight percent of U.S. adults surveyed said they trust their primary physician, with older adults (90 percent), white people (82 percent), and high-income individuals (89 percent) being more likely to say so.
9. Twenty-five percent of surveyed U.S. adults who reported lower trust in their physicians said their physician spends too little time with them, and 14 percent said their physician does not listen to them.
The research was released to coincide with the launch of the American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation's Building Trust initiative. Read more about the initiative here.