title: Exploration of the relationship between continuity, trust in regular doctors and patient satisfaction with consultations with family doctors.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the influence of longitudinal continuity and trust in patients' regular family doctors on patient satisfaction with consultations.
  
  
  METHODS
  Observational questionnaire study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Three family practice centres in the USA and four general practices in the UK.
  
  
  METHODS
  418 patients in the USA and 650 in the UK who were consulting family doctors.
  
  
  METHODS
  A pre-consultation questionnaire sought information about the patient's experience of continuity and trust in their regular doctor; a post-consultation questionnaire measured satisfaction with the consultation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  78.8% of patients rated seeing the same doctor every time they had a health problem as important or very important. Trust in the regular doctor, consulting the regular doctor and country were the strongest predictors of satisfaction. Patients who had a high level of trust in their regular doctor and consulted that doctor had the highest levels of satisfaction with their consultations. Among patients with relatively low levels of trust in regular doctor, levels of satisfaction were similar whether or not they consulted their regular doctor.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Consulting the regular doctor, trust and satisfaction with consultations are associated, and patients who consult a doctor they trust report the highest levels of satisfaction with consultations.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Governance Research & Development Unit, Department of General Practice & Primary Health Care, University of Leicester, Leicester General Hospital, UK. rb14@le.ac.uk
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Baker
authors.forename: Arch G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Mainous
authors.forename: Denis Pereira
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Gray
authors.forename: Margaret M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Love
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003266:Continuity of Patient Care / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D005194:Family Practice / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D005260:Female; D006302:Health Services Research; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D035502:Trust; D006113:United Kingdom; D014481:United States