Doctor-patient relationship: a covenant of trust.

The goals of medicine as a profession dedicated to healing and caring of the sick in a dignified manner depend very much on a stable and trusting doctor-patient relationship. In the last decade, rapid changes in the healthcare delivery system and socio-political climate have resulted in considerable strain on this relationship. What is needed is a reiteration of the fiduciary obligation of the physician and the central role of the patient in the relationship. Concrete steps and changes at the institutional and individual levels need to be taken to preserve the element of trust in the patient-physician covenant. Only then can the medical profession retain the moral dimension of its role in society.