CHICAGO, June 12 (UPI) -- Nearly all patients want to be greeted by name by their doctors, but doctors only address patients by name in half of first visits, says a U.S. study.
The study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, reported nearly all patients wanted to be greeted by name, including 50 percent by their first name, 17 percent by their last name and 24 percent by both their first and last name.
About 56 percent of patients wanted physicians to introduce themselves using first and last names, while 33 percent expected last name and 7 percent expected first name, according to the lead investigator Gregory Makoul, of Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, in Chicago.
"Greetings may seem a rather mundane part of physician-patient communication, but they create a first impression that can affect the chance of developing a therapeutic relationship," Makoul said in a statement. "Greetings are also one way to ensure proper identification of patients; this approach can improve patient safety."
The study also found that 83 percent of doctors shook hands during a first visit.
