Gowning: effects on patient satisfaction.
BACKGROUND
Given an extensive literature regarding the doctor-patient relationship, it appears curious that gowning status has received so little attention. The present study examined potential effects of gowning as opposed to not gowning patients at the point of presenting problem. Specifically, effects that gowning status might have on patients' trust in their physician, as well as overall duration of clinic visit, were investigated.


METHODS
Patients (N = 1500) were randomly assigned to gown or non-gown status on arrival for clinic visit. Subsequent screening following predetermined guidelines resulted in 895 subjects participating in the study. Fifty-one percent of these patients (n = 455) fully completed the Trust in Physician Scale. Total time data from check-in to checkout, by gowning status, were kept on all patients.


RESULTS
No significant effects for gowning status were found with respect to patients' trust in their physician or duration of clinic visit. There were also no significant interactions between gowning status, patient sex, physician sex, patient age, or patient education. Significant findings were demonstrated whereby younger patients and patients seeing a doctor for the first time reported less trust in their physician.


CONCLUSIONS
There is not sufficient evidence, to date, to suggest that gowning status has a significant impact on the doctor-patient relationship or the duration of clinic visit.
Meit
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Department of Family Medicine, West Virginia University School of Medicine, Morgantown 26506-9152, USA.
Williams
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Mencken
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Yasek
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D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003020:Clothing; D005194:Family Practice; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009819:Office Visits; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D013997:Time Factors; D014903:West Virginia