If you had to choose between a doctor who's compassionate and empathetic and one who is impersonal and aloof, which one would you choose? In 9 cases out of 10, the choice would be the former. This is corroborated by a recent study published in the Lancet, which is a combination of prior studies conducted on the subject. The study says that physicians who have a pleasing and warm "bedside manner" are more effective than ones who do not offer reassurance and act formally.
The 'placebo effect' is now an established phenomenon in medical science. Studies have noted that when patients are treated with a placebo but are made to believe that it is the medication that they require, their condition improves. Similarly, the study found that when doctors treated the patients with sympathy, compassion, hope and enthusiasm, the patients reported health improvement.
A similar trend was also seen in patients' expectations of the imminent treatment. A patient hoped to respond more positively to treatment that was described as "good", "safe" and "effective" and negatively to treatment that was described to have "potential side effects". The study also found that patients whose illness was treated with some kind of seriousness responded better than those whose illness was dismissed as being too trivial. Patients whose doctors gave them a clear idea about their illness, the treatment measures to be followed and the prognosis, viewed the doctor more positively than others.
Though these findings hold true for people with minor ailments, they may not hold much clout in case of patients with chronic illnesses, who with prior experiences may not be as open to positive suggestions. Thus when it comes to doctor-patient relationships, the theory of mind over matter may hold more water than we realise at present.
Lancet 2001; 357: 757-62