Author:
Meyer Samantha B.,Brown Patrick,Calnan Michael,Ward Paul R.,Little Jerrica,Betini Gustavo S.,Perlman Christopher M.,Burns Kathleen E.,Filice Eric
Abstract
Abstract
Context
The COVID-19 pandemic has reignited a commitment from the health policy and health services research communities to rebuilding trust in healthcare and created a renewed appetite for measures of trust for system monitoring and evaluation. The aim of the present paper was to develop a multidimensional measure of trust in healthcare that: (1) Is responsive to the conceptual and methodological limitations of existing measures; (2) Can be used to identify systemic explanations for lower levels of trust in equity-deserving populations; (3) Can be used to design and evaluate interventions aiming to (re)build trust.
Methods
We conducted a 2021 review of existing measures of trust in healthcare, 72 qualitative interviews (Aug-Dec 2021; oversampling for equity-deserving populations), an expert review consensus process (Oct 2021), and factor analyses and validation testing based on two waves of survey data (Nov 2021, n = 694; Jan-Feb 2022, n = 740 respectively).
Findings
We present the Trust in Multidimensional Healthcare Systems Scale (TIMHSS); a 38-item correlated three-factor measure of trust in doctors, policies, and the system. Measurement of invariance tests suggest that the TIMHSS can also be reliably administered to diverse populations.
Conclusions
This global measure of trust in healthcare can be used to measure trust over time at a population level, or used within specific subpopulations, to inform interventions to (re)build trust. It can also be used within a clinical setting to provide a stronger evidence base for associations between trust and therapeutic outcomes.
Funder
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Reference89 articles.
1. Birkhäuer J, Gaab J, Kossowsky J, Hasler S, Krummenacher P, Werner C, Gerger H. Trust in the health care professional and health outcome: a meta-analysis. PLoS ONE. 2017;12:e0170988.
2. Ward PR. Improving Access to, use of, and outcomes from Public Health Programs: the importance of building and maintaining Trust with Patients/Clients. Front Public Health. 2017;5:22.
3. Calnan M, Williams SJ, Gabe J. Uncertain times: trust matters during the pandemic. Discover Sci 2020, https://archive.discoversociety.org/2020/06/01/uncertain-times-trust-matters-during-the-pandemic/.
4. Ward PR, Lunnay B, Foley K, Meyer SB, Thomas J, Olver I, Miller ER. The case of Australia. Trust during pandemic uncertainty - a qualitative study of midlife women in South Australia. Int J Social Qual. 2021;11:289–308.
5. Ward PR. A sociology of the Covid-19 pandemic: a commentary and research agenda for sociologists. J Sociol. 2020;56:726–35.