Trust: The Scarcest of Medical Resources

Abstract

In this paper, I claim that the doctor–patient relationship can be viewed as a vessel of trust. Nonetheless, trust within the doctor–patient relationship has been impaired by managed care. When we conceive of trust as social capital, focusing on the role that it plays in individual and social well-being, trust can be viewed as a public good and a scarce medical resource. Given this, there is a moral obligation to protect the doctor–patient relationship from the cost-containment mechanisms that compromise its ability to produce trust.