Objective: To describe the doctors' satisfaction of the doctor-patient relationship and find out the influencing factors of the patients, gathering evidence to improve the doctor-patient relationship.
Methods: This study was a cross-sectional study, in which doctors and nurses in 10 hospitals of Beijing, Shandong and Chongqing were surveyed with structured questionnaires and in-depth interviews.
Results: The mean score of the doctors' satisfaction of the doctor-patient relationship was 59.97, which was much lower than the patients'. The patients' socio-demographic characteristics, social economic status (SES) and behavior characteristics influence the interaction of the doctors and the patients. The doctors' satisfaction of the doctor-patient relationship was influenced by the patients' trust.
Conclusion: The doctors' perspective is helpful to define the tension and the cause of the doctor-patient relationship. The patients' characteristics have important influence on the doctor-patient relationship. It's necessary to take action on the patients to improve the doctor-patient relationship.