The doctor‒patient relationship in the digital age: the case of hypertensive patients in Burkina Faso

Introduction The development of technologies has improved access to information for both doctors and patients. This accessibility can lead to conflicts during care and undermine the trust patients place in doctors. The objective of this study was to study the impact of online documentary research on the quality of the doctor‒patient relationship. Materials and methods Our study took place in the cardiology departments of teaching hospital Yalgado Ouédraogo and Bogodogo from March 1, 2024, to July 10, 2024. The study included hypertensive patients followed for at least six months. Validated questionnaires on the evaluation of trust in doctors, compliance with treatment, doctor‒patient agreement score, information asymmetry score between the doctor and the patient, online information search score and doctor quality score were used and filled in by external investigators at the service during a face‒to-face interview. All the scores are transformed and reduced to a value of 100. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse the correlations between variables and doctors' confidence. The test was statistically significant if p < 0.05. Results Our study involved 406 patients. The average age of the patients was 59 years, with a sex ratio of 0.49. One hundred thirty-five patients (33%) had access to the internet, and 70 (17%) were searching for information online. We noted a positive correlation between the quality of the doctor and confidence in the doctor (standardized coefficient = 0.55, p < 0.001) and a negative correlation between online information search and confidence in the doctor (standardized coefficient = − 0.114, p = 0.005). Physician quality has a positive correlation with variables such as compliance, patient‒physician agreement, and perceived information asymmetry (p < 0.001). Conclusion The search for information online can negatively impact trust in doctors. However, the impact on trust depends on the quality of the doctor. This highlights the importance of humanizing patient care in medical practice.