Rise of Health Consumerism in China and Its Effects on Physicians' Professional Identity and the Physician-Patient Relationship and Communication. Academic Article

abstract

• The physician-patient relationship in China is highly strained. This study examined the professional identity of physicians and their perceptions of the physician-patient relationship against the backdrop of the rise of health consumerism in China. Structured interviews with 29 physicians found that the marketization of medical care and the rise of health consumerism caused physicians to have a conflicted professional identity. The traditional bureaucratic relationship between physicians and patients based on implicit trust was gradually replaced by an arm's length relationship characterized by self-interest, opportunism, and mistrust. In addition, the transition from physician-centered communication to patient-centered communication in China was tenacious. Theoretical and practical implications of the current study are discussed.

authors

• Tang, Lu

published proceedings

• Health Commun

author list (cited authors)

• Tang, L. u., & Guan, M.

citation count

• 13

complete list of authors

• Tang, Lu||Guan, Mengfei

publication date

• May 2018

publisher

• Taylor & Francis  Publisher

published in

• Health Communication  Journal

keywords

• China
• Communication
• Consumer Health Information
• Female
• Grounded Theory
• Humans
• Interviews As Topic
• Male
• Patient-Centered Care
• Perception
• Physician-Patient Relations
• Physicians
• Social Identification
• Trust

PubMed Central ID

• 28281791

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

• 10.1080/10410236.2017.1290015

start page

• 636

end page

• 642

volume

• 33

issue

• 5

URL

• http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2017.1290015

user-defined tag

• 3 Good Health and Well-Being