Physicians Punctuality

Physicians ' punctuality is a fundamental aspect by the reason of being the building block for patient-doctor relationship and the cornerstone for professionalism.(1,2) Therefore, it illustrates the quality of training doctors received, and demonstrate how the health care is organized. Patient-doctor relationship is a prime concept when it comes to healthcare. In spite of the variation of the meaning or scope of the relationship according to the viewpoint of the observer, “clinical imperatives emphasize its value as a component of the care process that might improve health outcomes". Thus, patient-doctor relationship is a valuable concept for eliciting the quality of healthcare. (1)

Even medical professionalism has started to become more emphasize

It evaluates physician’s helpfulness, knowledge, quality of staff and punctuality of physician. The results of this study eventually indicated the quality of staff and punctuality of physician to be generally positive according to patients’ rating. Only 30.88% (34,593/112,024) of ratings for punctuality were 5 out of 5, which was lower percentage in relation to the other aspects analyzed by that study.

Punctuality by itself has various definitions based on the situation such as workplace. It is the characteristic of being able to complete a required task or fulfilling an obligation before or at a previously designated time. Simply, punctuality is to show up on time. It is a daily challenge for physicians to be on time during the scheduled appointments due to different duties and in-work tasks. This may leave a negative impact on patient-doctor relationship and thus, lack of professionalism. This is why punctuality considered as a fundamental aspect in the meaning of patient-physician relationship and professionalism. (1, 3)

According to our review, there has not been done such a straightforward study to focus on physicians ' punctuality in the world. Therefore, applying this study in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will participate in elaborating the healthcare quality. Addressing this topic and evaluating the factors, which may rule physicians’ punctuality, can bring further enhancement in healthcare society. This paper will study whether doctors are punctual or not, and what are the factors affecting the physicians ' punctuality and the impact on both professionalism and patient-doctor