The physicians' recognition and attitude about patient education in practice

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Health Communication
• Clinical Practice

Background:

• Patient education is a critical component of effective healthcare delivery.
• Understanding physicians' perspectives on patient education is vital for improving practice.
• Existing literature highlights a gap between the perceived importance and actual implementation of patient education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess physicians' current recognition and attitudes toward patient education in clinical settings.
• To identify factors influencing the provision of patient education by physicians.
• To evaluate the alignment of current patient education practices with a biopsychosocial model.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional survey was conducted using self-administered questionnaires.
• 150 physicians from university and general hospitals were targeted, with 137 valid responses analyzed.
• The questionnaire evaluated physicians' recognition, attitudes, and practices related to patient education.

Main Results:

• 76.6% of physicians viewed patient education as essential, with higher recognition among family physicians (97.1%) compared to others (69.6%).
• Satisfactory doctor-patient relationships were reported by 51.1%, with higher rates among board-certified physicians (79.4%) than residents (43.3%).
• While explaining medical details was common (73.0%), assessing patient readiness for behavior change was low (29.9%), indicating a gap in holistic patient engagement.

Conclusions:

• Physicians acknowledge the importance of patient education, but its implementation is inconsistent.
• There is a need to strengthen the biopsychosocial approach in patient education, moving beyond biomedical information.
• Medical education curricula, both undergraduate and postgraduate, require increased focus on comprehensive patient education strategies.