ABSTRACT
Doctor-patient interaction greatly influences patient trust. Communication with patients may create barriers to trust. The importance of the patient’s trust in the physician is due to research findings indicating that patient’s trust leads to high adherence to medication and guidelines. Patient trust is associated with fewer readmissions, better health over time, and a higher quality of life. Awareness of gaps between expectations of chronically ill patients’ from physicians and physicians’ expectations from patients will allow physicians to build trust and avoid communication that breaches trust. The lack of dialogue between the physician and the patient regarding expectations, whether the expectations are clear or ambiguous, may impair the patient’s trust in the physician, despite the physician’s efforts to provide optimal clinical care.
