Medical informed consent is essential to the physician's ability to diagnose and treat patients as well as the patient's right to accept or reject clinical evaluation, treatment, or both. Medical informed consent should be an exchange of ideas that buttresses the patient-physician relationship. The consent process should be the foundation of the fiduciary relationship between a patient and a ph...

BACKGROUND There is an urgent need to improve outcomes and reduce costs for patients with heart failure (HF). Physician volume is associated with better outcomes for patients undergoing procedures, but its association with outcomes for medically managed diseases, such as HF, is not well understood. METHODS AND RESULTS We used Medicare inpatient data in 2009 to examine all HF admissions to acu...

Three significant factors in the shaping of modern medicine contribute to broad perceptions about trust in the patient-physician relationship: moral, professional, and epidemiological uncertainty. Trusting a physician depends first on trusting a person, then trusting a person's skills and training, and finally trusting the science that underwrites those skills. This essay, in part based on my b...

Ž . Customer Relationship Management CRM is a valuable concept for hospitals to establish long-term physician relationships. Given predetermined reimbursement amounts, clinical interventions by physicians can significantly impact hospital profitability and quality. Therefore, disseminating quality and cost information to physicians can build lasting relationships, while insuring financial stabi...