Physician facilitation of patient involvement in care: correspondence between patient and observer reports

The authors surveyed 128 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (1) to evaluate the congruence between patients' and observers' perceptions of physicians' facilitation of patients' involvement in care and (2) to identify which physician behaviors were most closely related to patients' perceptions that their doctors encouraged them to be involved in their care. The patients reported the degree to which they perceived that their physicians encouraged their involvement in the medical care process. Raters blind to the study hypotheses coded audiotapes of the physician-patient interactions. Pearson's r and simultaneous multiple regression used to address the study questions indicated a small to moderate, but statistically significant, association between patients' perceptions and observers' reports concerning the physicians' levels of facilitation. Open-ended questions, responding to patient questions, and offering fewer alternatives were all associated with the patients' positive reports of physician facilitation.