The study findings were published online in the journal of Patient Education and Counseling. The findings help illustrate how physicians and patients can best work together. For the study, researchers interviewed 25 physicians and found 22 had at least one favorite patient, or multiple standout patients. These patients were neither the easiest to treat, nor the most similar to the physician, according to the report. In fact, many physicians said their most challenging patients ultimately became favorites. The one common theme among favorite patients was they had built a relationship with their physicians over time a period of time, ranging from a year to several decades.
The researchers also found both the physicians who said they had favorite patients and those who said they did not play favorites were concerned that the label indicated they gave these patients preferential treatment, according to the report.
“This concern demonstrates that physicians are striving to be fair and to give all their patients the best possible care,” Joy Lee, PhD, lead author, said in a statement from the school announcing the study findings. “We discovered that doctors really thought about their relationship with patients, which is encouraging from a patient perspective. Their thinking really humanizes the patient-physician relationship.”
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