Patients' Preferences for Traditional Medicine Doctor's Attire

Doctors' attire has known to impact patients' trust and confidence for better clinical practice. However, few survey research regarding this topic has been conducted in traditional asian medicine field. The aim of our study is to determine whether traditional medicine doctor's attire impacts on patients' confidence and trust.

Participants will be given randomly one set of photographs from the 2 kind of photographs, i.e., photographs of a male or female doctor, each set dressed in 4 different styles.

After this, they will be asked to report their preferences for the 4 styles of dress according to given questions and they will answer the degree of their feeling on the importance of Korean Medicine doctor's appearance.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Attire Preference

Detailed Description

After seeing one set of photographs, participants will answer the questions below.

Choose the most appropriate attire from the four dressing styles (a.formal wear b.conventional white coat c.white coat in traditional form d. casual wear) to the questions below (1-10).

1. Which attire of Korean medicine doctor would you trust the most?
2. Which attire of Korean medicine doctor would you be more likely to follow their advice?
3. Which attire of Korean medicine doctor would you recommend to your acquaintance?
4. Which attire of Korean medicine doctor would you be the most comfortable ?
5. Which attire of Korean medicine doctor would you prefer to discuss an intimate social problem or a private issue?
6. Which attire of Korean medicine doctor would you prefer for a minor medical problem(eg, a cold)?
7. Which attire of Korean medicine doctor would you expect to be the most clean?
8. Which attire of Korean medicine doctor would you expect to be the most hygienic?
9. Which attire of Korean medicine doctor would you expect not to spread infectious germs to others?
10. Which attire of Korean medicine doctor would you have the most confidence in their diagnosis and treatment when they perform clinical examination by touching you?

11. How strongly do you feel about the importance of Korean medicine doctor's appearance?

    1. extremely important
    2. quite important
    3. important
    4. a little important
    5. not at all important

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 175

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Korea, Republic of
  • Gyeongsangnam-do
    • Yangsan, Gyeongsangnam-do, Korea, Republic of, 626-770
      • Korean Medicine Hospital of Pusan National University

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 19 years to 80 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Probability Sample

Study Population

People in the Outpatient Waiting Room

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• More than 19 years old, less than 80 years old at the time of the study
• Outpatients from diverse clinic departments in Korean Medicine Hospital of Pusan National University, Yangsan, Korea

Exclusion Criteria:

• Subjects who are demented, noncommunicative, or blind
• Companion(s) of the interviewee

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Patient's preference for a specific attire of the traditional medicine doctor from four different styles of dress.	Patients will choose the most appropriate attire from four dressing styles (formal suit, conventional white coat, white coat in traditional form and casual wear).	During day one visit (lasting an average of 1-3 hours)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Participants' feeling about the importance of Korean Medicine doctor's appearance.	During day one visit (lasting an average of 1-3 hours)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Korean Medicine Hospital of Pusan National University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: July 1, 2011
• Primary Completion (Actual): June 1, 2012
• Study Completion (Actual): December 1, 2013

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 14, 2011
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 18, 2011
• First Posted (Estimate): July 19, 2011

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): September 2, 2015
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: September 1, 2015
• Last Verified: September 1, 2015

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: People in the outpatient waiting room
• Other Study ID Numbers: KCRC-IRB-2011008