Search engines, social media often beat physicians as patients’ first stop

Physicians’ “health-xiety,” their anxiety about the healthcare industry, is on the rise — but their trust in the relationships they’ve built with patients hasn’t wavered.

A new study of 1,000 U.S. physicians found 63% said their anxieties about the industry have increased over the past year. Still, 97% believe their patients trust their expertise as their provider.

The strain shows up in daily practice, with physicians citing time constraints (72%), EHR (electronic health record) documentation burdens (70%), prior authorizations (65%), high patient volume (57%) and staffing shortages (57%) as their top challenges.

Despite that confidence, physicians say they don’t think patients always come to them first. Most believe patients often turn to search engines (77%), social media (65%) and their friends (52%) before they turn to healthcare providers and specialists (51%).

Commissioned by PatientPoint (https://patientpoint.com/) for their inaugural “Physician Confidence Index” and conducted by Talker Research, the study found 68% of respondents said they’ve had patients discuss AI-sourced health information with them.

Overall, nearly half (48%) of doctors polled believe the health information shared by AI is “somewhat trustworthy.”

Rather than resist the shift, physicians are bringing technology into their own practices on their terms. Sixty-two percent said their practice uses AI-enabled tools or platforms for their care delivery and practice operations including telehealth platforms (67%), AI-powered documentation tools (64%) and digital intake and check-in tools (64%) in their practice.

Another two in three believe the greatest benefit would come in the form of a more tailored diagnosis and treatment plan for their patients.

Still, 64% said they’re concerned AI could strip away the personal touch of healthcare altogether.

“Patients today have more ways than ever to access health information, but physicians remain at the center of how patients make sense of it,” said Kyle Barich, Chief Strategy & Marketing Officer at PatientPoint. “What these findings reinforce is that technology can be a powerful tool to support better care, but it can’t replace the trust and human connection between a patient and their physician. The opportunity is to use technology to strengthen that relationship, not compete with it.”

While physicians see significant potential in technology, their optimism exists alongside growing concerns about the healthcare industry.

Most physicians (81%) said they’ve seen a shift in patients’ attitudes toward the healthcare industry, with 55% describing the shift as negative and 26% as positive.

Sixty-nine percent believe their patients have become more anxious about the cost of their recommended care in the past year than they were five years ago.

Physicians’ biggest pain points over the past year include dealing with health misinformation (44%), dealing with insurance policies (37%), insurance only covering certain medications or generic versions (30%), staffing shortages (30%) and handling increased patient volumes (23%).

Still, 67% of physicians believe having a modern or digitally forward healthcare practice improves the patient experience.

Patients report feeling similar pressure. In its fifth annual edition, PatientPoint’s companion Patient Confidence Index reports that 43% said their own anxiety about healthcare has increased over the past year, driven largely by the cost and affordability of care (54%), inflation (41%) and difficulty affording treatment (34%).

Nearly half (47%) said that anxiety has led them to delay preventive care altogether.

Trust, though, holds steady on both sides of the exam table: 84% of patients said they trust their providers and the information they share.

Physicians are somewhat more optimistic about technology’s upside overall, with 76% saying it improves the patient experience compared with 49% of patients who say the same — but both groups agree it should never come at the cost of that human connection.

“Physicians are navigating significant pressures, from time constraints and administrative burdens to changing patient expectations,” continued Barich. “What stands out is that, even amid these challenges, physicians remain confident in the care they provide and open to technology that can help them work more efficiently and improve the patient experience. Tech can be used to support physicians while preserving the trusted, human connection at the center of care.”