Half of Americans Report Anxiety Before a Doctor’s Appointment

What You Should Know: 

– Nearly half (48%) of Americans report feeling anxiety before a doctor’s appointment—up nearly 10 percent from 2022 (39%), according to  PatientPoint’s 2023 Patient Confidence Index.

– The survey results released in partnership with OnePoll highlight the importance of treating the whole patient and taking their unique circumstances into consideration, as well as empowering moments that matter for better health. 

2023 PatientPoint Patient Confidence Index Key Findings

Key findings of the survey report include: 

1. Rising Patient Anxiety in Healthcare: The survey reveals an alarming trend in patient anxiety, which often leads individuals to delay seeking healthcare. A significant number of respondents cited factors such as potential unaffordability (52%), anxiety about procedures or tests (40%), and the fear of receiving distressing news (39%) as reasons for postponing healthcare visits.

2. Ethnic Disparities in Healthcare: The findings point to concerning disparities among patients of different racial and ethnic backgrounds. For instance, Asian Americans reported significantly higher levels of confusion (36%), feeling overwhelmed (37%), and intimidation (30%) before a doctor’s visit compared to their white counterparts. These disparities underline the urgent need for equitable healthcare practices.

3. Trust in Healthcare Providers: On a positive note, the survey indicates that a substantial 87% of respondents expressed trust in their healthcare providers. Factors contributing to this trust include providers’ ability to explain conditions or symptoms in simple terms (62%), attentiveness to patients’ concerns (57%), and the provision of personalized education and resources on conditions, symptoms, and treatment options (55%).

Survey Background/Methodology

Data from two double-opt-in surveys conducted by OnePoll on behalf of PatientPoint. The first survey polled 2,000 nationally representative Americans between Aug. 2 and Aug. 11, 2023, with an ethnicity split through natural fallout, and the second polled 275 Latino/Hispanic Americans between Aug. 17 and Aug. 23, 2023. The surveys were conducted by market research company OnePoll, whose team members are members of the Market Research Society and have corporate membership to the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR).

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