Patient-centered Communication Behaviors on Primetime Television
Beth L Hoffman1,2,3, Lauren A Cafferty4, Parul Jain5
1Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Journal of Health Communication
|February 5, 2020
Summary
Television portrayals of patient-centered communication (PCC) often lack depth, focusing on superficial behaviors like eye contact. Crucial aspects like managing patient uncertainty and self-management are rarely depicted, potentially shaping unrealistic patient expectations.
Area of Science:
- Health Communication
- Media Studies
- Sociology of Health
Background:
- Television influences health knowledge, perceptions, and behaviors.
- Depictions of patient-provider interactions may shape viewer expectations of real-life healthcare experiences.
- Limited research exists on patient-centered communication (PCC) in popular primetime television.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the frequency and nature of patient-centered communication (PCC) behaviors in popular primetime television programs.
- To compare PCC behaviors in medical versus non-medical television programs.
- To understand how media portrayals might influence patient expectations and healthcare experiences.
Main Methods:
- Examined 203 patient-provider interactions across 84 episodes of 22 primetime TV programs (aired 2016-2017).
- Analyzed interactions for the presence of 21 optimal PCC behaviors.
- Categorized programs as medical or non-medical for comparative analysis.
Main Results:
- The most common PCC behaviors observed were provider eye contact and good manners.
- PCC behaviors related to managing patient uncertainty and promoting self-management were infrequent.
- Providers in medical programs were more likely to exhibit behaviors like asking questions, good manners, and self-disclosure compared to those in non-medical programs.
Conclusions:
- Current television portrayals of patient-provider interactions often emphasize superficial PCC behaviors.
- The lack of depiction of crucial PCC elements may set unrealistic expectations for patients.
- Further research is necessary to investigate the impact of these media portrayals on patient expectations and health outcomes.
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