Survey: Latvian residents generally trust young doctors

Several young doctors have publicly stated that they often had to hear offensive comments about their age, skills, and competence from patients. However, according to a poll conducted by Norstat in collaboration with LSM, only 3% of the population said they did not trust younger doctors.

47% of all respondents said they willingly trusted younger doctors, age doesn't matter. 10% said they only trust recommended young doctors, while 35 percent trust them depending on the situation.

3% said they did not trust younger doctors, and 4% did not express their position.

Younger doctors are trusted most by younger respondents - in the 18-29 age group, more than half (55%) replied that age was irrelevant when it came to trust.

In the 30- to 39-year-old age group, 52% trust younger doctors. In the age group 40-49, only \40% said they do.

Residents in the 50-59 age group have more often expressed a negative position – 5% chose the “do not trust” answer in this group.

Younger doctors are more trusted by respondents who indicated Latvian nationality (52% trust, 2% do not trust), while respondents who indicated Russian nationality were more skeptical (41% trust, 5% do not trust).

 

Several younger doctors previously told portal LSM.lv they had faced cases where patients tried to teach them how to treat or even directed physical aggression at a medic. Health law expert Solvita Olsena said most patient complaints are about communication between a doctor and a patient -- something went untold, and the patient hasn't been informed or hasn't understood. However, insulting doctors is unacceptable.

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