TheBedsideManner.com -- A 21st Century Approach to Understanding the Physician-Patient Relationship

Milwaukee, Wisconsin (PRWEB) July 10, 2007

The Bedside Manner (http://www.thebedsidemanner.com) is a research blog created to invite patients, medical students and physicians to "blog" their experiences of what is being done right in the doctor-patient relationship and their wishes for improving this relationship.

Many academic and public articles draw attention to waning public trust in their relationship with their doctor. Shaili Jain MD, the blog's creator and principle investigator of the research project, found that existing medical literature extensively covers what a good doctor should be, but very few studies have asked the question, "what do patients think a good doctor is?" This is the first large scale scientific study intended to investigate the current state of this complex relationship with input from both sides.

Harnessing the democratizing potential of blogs

Having a medical research project in cyberspace is a unique and novel approach to studying this complex relationship. Dr Jain was impressed with the ease of accessibility, complete confidentiality and transparency of data that a blog could offer participants compared with conventional research methods. For example, patients can log on and read about physicians' experiences and vice versa thereby allowing physicians and patients to literally get on the same page.

Differences between The Bedside Manner and other websites that "rate" doctors

The Bedside Manner is, in essence, a research site collecting this valuable data. This data will be used to promote a better understanding amongst physicians of what the patient experience of the doctor-patient relationship is and vice versa. The site is also not selling anything e.g. advertising space. Complete confidentiality is a cornerstone of its creation with no tracking services being used. In addition a moderator function edits any content that may reveal identities.

About the principle investigator

Shaili Jain MD attended Liverpool Medical School in England and completed her postgraduate training in the United States. She currently works as a General Adult Psychiatrist and is also a Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. She is the author of "Understanding Physician Pharmaceutical Industry Interactions", Cambridge University Press 2007.

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