Patient-physician negotiation.

Abstract

The low level of patient compliance with physician management regimens is widely recognized. Although numerous studies either have measured levels of noncompliance or have attempted to fathom the essential elements of patient-physician interaction, they do not indicate how complicance may be increased. Negotiation is a process by which two active and equal participants negotiate to obtain their respective goals (which are often at odds). Without appropriate negotiation, which requires the patient's active participation, the physician cannot hope to motivate the patient. Patients will continue to be noncompliant as long as they are treated as inferiors in the process.