Parental trust in health care--a prospective study from the Children's Cancer Hospital in Egypt.
OBJECTIVE
Patient-physician communication and patient satisfaction are important elements of cancer care. Trust is considered to be crucial for the patient-physician relationship, yet little is to be found in the literature regarding what factors may influence trust.


METHODS
We assessed predictors of trust in health-care professionals and in the medical care by administering two questionnaires, one at start of chemotherapy treatment and one at the time of the third chemotherapy cycle, to 304 parents of children with newly diagnosed cancer at the Children's Cancer Hospital in Cairo, Egypt.


RESULTS
Parents' trust in the medical care at the time of the child's third chemotherapy cycle was significantly associated with the following at the start of treatment: having received at least moderate information about the disease (relative risk (RR) 13.2; 95% CI 7.8-22.3) and the treatment (RR 17.2; 95% CI 9.5-31.4), having the opportunity to communicate with the child's physicians (RR 21.3; 95% CI 11.7-38.8), being satisfied with the physicians conversation style (RR 30.6; 95% CI 14.4-64.9), having the emotional needs met (RR 22.2; 95% CI 11.8-41.9), and being met with care by the child's physicians (RR 32.0; 95% CI 15.2-67.7). After multivariable model selection, the strongest predictor of trust at the time of the third chemotherapy cycle was to be met with care at the start of treatment.


CONCLUSIONS
Parents being met with care by the child's physicians at the beginning of the child's chemotherapy treatment develop an increased trust in the medical care.
Department of Oncology, Division of Clinical Cancer Epidemiology, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Hanan
H
El Malla
Ulrika
U
Kreicbergs
Gunnar
G
Steineck
Ulrica
U
Wilderäng
Yasser El Sayed
Yel S
Elborai
Nathalie
N
Ylitalo
D001294:Attitude to Health; D002173:Cancer Care Facilities; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003142:Communication; D003258:Consumer Behavior; D004534:Egypt; D005260:Female; D006776:Hospitals, Pediatric; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology*; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D011368:Professional-Family Relations; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D035502:Trust