Trust in dentist‐patient relationships: mapping the relevant concepts

Abstract

Trust has a central role in healthcare encounters. This review explored concepts relevant to trust in dentist‐patient relationships. The findings were demonstrated by drawing visual system maps for better understanding of the inherent complexity. A pragmatic approach was employed to search for evidence. The approach was initiated with a systematised searching protocol and followed by an iterative process of drawing maps and complementing references. The analysis‐synthesis process found relevant key concepts and sub‐concepts presented within three frameworks: the continuum of studying trust (utilisation, measurement, and establishment); beneficiaries of trust utilisation (patients, dentists, and oral health system); and a transformational model of trust development (identification‐based, knowledge‐based, and deterrence/calculus‐based trust). Trust in dentist‐patient relationships needs to be assessed in a multidisciplinary approach for interconnectedness among relevant concepts. The findings are represented in patient‐centred care and quality of care with common underlying values. Despite the centrality of trust in medical/dental contexts, empirical evidence is insufficient beyond normative suggestions from previous studies. Based on the implications of thematic analysis and interpretation of the system maps, this paper can serve as a guide and source of information for further research of trust in dentist‐patient relationships.

Italian Response to Coronavirus Pandemic in Dental Care Access: The DeCADE Study

“…Clinicians have to deal with blood-borne viruses and respiratory pathogens every day, which represents the highest risks of cross-infection [ 29 ]. In accordance with a recent study [ 30 ], quality patient-centered care plays a crucial role in the relationship of trust between patients and dentists.…”

Dentist‐patient relationships and oral health impact in Australian adults

“…For example, adherence/continuity of healthcare services, 9 uptake of preventive dental service, and longitudinal changes in OHRQoL can apply to the case. More relationship‐based outcomes are also suggested considering ‘emotional components’ in trust 7 and more relevance of trust to relationships than satisfaction, 31 such as preference in shared decision‐making and incidence of complaints in dental practice 36 . The other is that trust may be mediated by other DPR variables in the association with OHRQoL.…”

Are trust and satisfaction similar in dental care settings?

“…For example, multitrait‐multimethod matrix to deal with common method variance 36 and exploratory structural equation modelling to prevent the misspecification from zero cross‐loading assumptions in factor structure 39 may be beneficial. In addition to measuring the constructs as outcomes, different aspects of DPR may need to be reflected in further studies such as the process of establishing/maintaining trust and satisfaction 6 …”

“…The concept of clinician‐patient relationships has been noted to be hard to operationalize for its multidimensionality and compartmentalization 4 . Nevertheless, conceptual and theoretical models from the literature suggest a few relevant constructs 4 including but not limited to trust, 5,6 satisfaction, 3,7 dental fear/anxiety, 8 communication 9 and autonomy/involvement in decision making 10 . Among them, trust and satisfaction in healthcare contexts, both salient to comprising healing relationships, have been compared and discussed for their contiguous attributes in previous studies 5,11 .…”