COVID-19 Impact on the Doctor-Patient Relationship: Patient Perspectives on Emergency Physician Empathy and Communication

OBJECTIVE: To investigate in how the current COVID-19 pandemic affects patient’s perceptions of emergency physician empathy and communication. METHODS: Patients cared for by Emergency Department physicians with the lowest satisfaction scores were surveyed within one week of discharge via phone. Using questions from the Consultation and Relational Empathy (CARE) survey, patients rated their satisfaction with their Emergency provider’s empathy and communication on a scale of 1 to 5 and provided feedback on how the patient-provider interaction could be improved. Demographic data and patient responses to CARE survey questions were compared between pre-COVID-19 and during COVID-19 time. Patient’s open-ended responses were analyzed for themes related to the impact of COVID-19 on the patient-provider relationship. RESULTS: Patient median quantitative scores were 5 (4-5) across all five questions of pre-COVID-19 and 5 (4-5) during COVID-19 for all questions except two (showing care and compassion), median 5(5-5). Female patients rated provider empathy and communication lower than mens. There was no differences across age strata. A shift in provider focuses to COVID-19 only care (N=3), and an understanding of the stress on healthcare processes (N=13) from open-ended responses themes emerged of patients who want to minimize interactions within the emergency department (N=3). CONCLUSIONS: The external factor of the current pandemic did not negatively impact patient’s satisfaction scores. Many patients express leniency and gratitude for emergency providers during this challenging time. Their responses seem to mirror current societal views of frontline healthcare workers.