Is the gender or age of the physician key to a good physician-patient with inflammatory bowel disease relationship?

Abstract

A good patient-physician relationship in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is very important and physician empathy is its cornerstone. There is no evidence about if age and/or sex of physicians and patients could influence on perceived empathy by patients. The aim of the study was to assess the level of empathy of IBD specialist physicians perceived by their patients and if it varies according to the age and gender of the patient and the physician. We performed a national cross-sectional study based on voluntary online survey to IBD patients that included the Consultation and Relational Empathy (CARE) scale. Five hundred sixty one responses to the survey were received. After applying exclusion criteria, 536 patients were included in the analysis. Total median score of CARE scale was 44.5 (maximum possible score: 50 points). Most of the patients (99.1%) considered the contents of the questionnaire to be an important issue. There were no significant differences in CARE scale scores in function of patient/physician age range or gender [physician gender: males vs. females: median 46 vs. 44, p=0.139; physician age: <40 years, 40-60 years, >60 years: 45.5 vs. 44 vs. 44, p=0.328]. Spanish inflammatory bowel disease patients have a great physician empathy perception, which is the key to a good patient-physician relationship, and this fact is not influenced by age or gender of patients or inflammatory bowel disease specialist.