Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31685506›Full record

ArticleBMJ open2019

What is clinician presence? A qualitative interview study comparing physician and non-physician insights about practices of human connection.

Cati Brown-Johnson, Rachel Schwartz, Amrapali Maitra, Marie C Haverfield, Aaron Tierney, Jonathan G Shaw, Dani L Zionts, Nadia Safaeinili, Sonoo Thadaney Israni, Abraham Verghese and 1 more

Open access · goldAbstract readComparative Study
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
18citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
2.5field-weighted citation impact, top 11% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

18 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 36 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  5. Safeguarding Compassion in Virtual Family Physician Care.Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine : JABFM · 2025
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  13. Improvisation in the Time of a Pandemic: Field Notes on Resilience.Journal of graduate medical education · 2022
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  14. Associations between the severity of medical and surgical complications and perception of surgeon empathy in esophageal and gastric cancer patients.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2021
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  16. Improv: Transforming Physicians and Medicine.Medical science educator · 2021
    Article
  17. Creating Virtual Presence During a Pandemic.Journal of patient experience · 2020
    Article
  18. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Cati Brown-JohnsonPrimary Care and Population Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States catibj@stanford.edu.ORCID 0000-0002-5415-3665
Rachel SchwartzPrimary Care and Population Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States.
Amrapali MaitraBrigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
Marie C HaverfieldDepartment of Communication Studies, San Jose State University, San Jose, California, United States.
Aaron TierneyPrimary Care and Population Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States.
Jonathan G ShawPrimary Care and Population Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States.
Dani L ZiontsPrimary Care and Population Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States.
Nadia SafaeiniliPrimary Care and Population Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States.
Sonoo Thadaney IsraniPresence Center, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States.
Abraham VerghesePresence Center, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States.
Donna M ZulmanPrimary Care and Population Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, United States.
Stanford University · USVA Palo Alto Health Care System · USBrigham and Women's Hospital · USSan Jose State University · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveWe sought to investigate the concept and practices of 'clinician presence', exploring how physicians and professionals create connection, engage in interpersonal interaction, and build trust with individuals across different circumstances and contexts.

designIn 2017-2018, we conducted qualitative semistructured interviews with 10 physicians and 30 non-medical professionals from the fields of protective services, business, management, education, art/design/entertainment, social services, and legal/personal services.

settingPhysicians were recruited from primary care clinics in an academic medical centre, a Veterans Affairs clinic, and a federally qualified health centre.

participantsParticipants were 55% men and 45% women; 40% were non-white.

resultsQualitative analyses yielded a definition of presence as

conclusionsClinician presence involves learning to step back, pause, and be prepared to receive a patient's story. Building on strategies from physicians and non-medical professionals, clinician presence is best enacted through purposeful intention to connect, conscious navigation of time, and proactive management of technology and the environment to focus attention on the patient. Everyday practice or ritual supporting these strategies could support physician self-care as well as physician-patient connection.

Indexed as

AttentionAttitude of Health PersonnelAttitude to HealthInterpersonal RelationsPhysician-Patient RelationsAdultFemaleHumansInterviews as TopicMaleMiddle AgedPhysiciansPrimary Health CareQualitative ResearchTrustburnoutclinician presencephysician-patient relationshipsprimary health carequalitative research

Identifiers

PMID31685506
PMCPMC6858153
OpenAlexW2985227326

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.