Contrary to what some patients claim or believe and based on new evidence, doctors are spending more time talking with their patients and tending to their needs. Even though doctors have actually taken pay cuts, when considering inflation rates over the last several years, they are spending more time with their patients.

Whether more time being spent with patients by doctors is due to the aging population, which on average, have more health problems and require more focused care, or the fact that many of us are taking considerable interest in our health and asking more questions, the visits are lengthening. More and more patients are investigating their ailments or illnesses before going to the doctor and often times have formulated questions for the doctor which may result in longer visit times.

Based on the newly released study reported in the November 9 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine, the lead researcher with the University of Michigan Health System, Dr. Lena M. Chen said, “Patients spent more time with their primary care physicians during office visits in 2005 than they did almost a decade earlier, and overall they seemed to receive better care.” In an attempt to determine if a decrease in doctors’ income and the growing number of older patients were affecting patients’ quality of care, Chan’s team considered evidence gathered during the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey including records from 1997 to 2005, from 46,000 primary care doctors visits.

According to Chan, evidence from their study showed the average time of a doctor’s visit with a patient increased by 16 percent from 1997 to 2005, and the number of visits to primary care doctors increased by 10 percent. Time spent with a doctor for a regular check up, based on the study, increased by 3.4 minutes. Time spent with the doctor for those suffering from specific ailments, such as high blood pressure increased by 3.7 minutes, diabetes testing increased by 4.2 minutes, and diagnosis of joint pain increased by 5.9 minutes.

Because the population is aging and patients are coming to doctor’s visits with more questions about their illness or sickness, doctors are working longer hours to maintain their income level, according to Dr. Greg Sachs a professor of medicine and director of the division of general internal medicine and geriatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine. He said, because of these changes, healthcare professionals, “are looking for creative solutions to free up doctor time, and doctors are really working a lot harder. Some doctors are already taking advantage of the addition of nurse practitioners or physician’s assistants to their staff, allowing doctors to be freed up for more critical or complex patients.

While longer doctors visits on average helped to improve patients care overall, instances where prescribing drugs was necessary didn’t warrant an improvement in time spent with the doctor. But there was a notable improvement in time spent with patients needing counseling or disease screening. The authors of the study said, “We found no improvement in rates of diet and exercise counseling during the study period, despite the evidence of the benefits of these interventions among high-risk patients.” The study did not consider the time spent waiting to see the doctor but rather the time the patient actually spent with the doctor.

While the study is encouraging, illustrating in general we are not being shafted in regards to our average time spent with our doctors, there is still room for improvement in several areas of patient care. We will continue to see changes involving the processes of our health care systems as we continue to hear about health care reform through our government. When planning for a doctor’s visit, patients should consider writing down any questions they may have for the doctor and have a list of all medications they are taking, as well as supplements, to take with them to their visit.

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