This is a good quality for a doctor to have as it makes the patient feel more comfortable.

             However, it should be noted that taking time to explain medical conditions and treatments to patients is becoming increasingly more difficult and time exhausting. This is because the public has become more aware of medical conditions and developments in medicine through the media. Consequently they put greater demands on the doctor"s time by wanting to know more and more details about their condition. The result of this is that it decreases the amount off time doctors have for their other responsibilities and so reduces their professional competency. Thus, a further distinction between a good and bad doctor is that a good doctor is able to satisfy a patient"s needs and curiosity in a time period such that he or she is able to fulfill all their other clinical responsibilities. The ability to do this is founded in good communication skills.

             Another characteristic needed by a doctor to maintain a good doctor-patient relationship is (as the B.M.C states ) "to act in a polite and considerate manner." This might seem like an obvious attribute and one that would be easy to accommodate by both good and bad doctors. However the distinction between the two types of doctor becomes clearer when dealing with a difficult patient. An example of a difficult patient was illustrated on one ward visit with a patient who had been confined in isolation because he had contracted M.R.A.S ( an illness contracted from stating in the hospital). Due to the irony of the situation the patient was clearly frustrated and orally abusive to both doctors and patients. It is easy for a doctor to reflect back some of the hostile by a decrease in the level of care he or she provides for the patient. However, a good doctor must be able to feel empathy for the patient and so try to understand the frustration felt by the patient.