Gopichandran, Vijayaprasad2019-09-252019-09-252013-07-0920130975 - 5691http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12424/191017There has been increased interest over the past couple of decades in the public’s trust in doctors and in the health system. The fundamental basis of a healthcare relationship is trust, which is the patient’s voluntary acceptance of his vulnerability in the expectation that the healthcare provider will do the best for him (1).The changing socio-political and healthcare environment in india may be creating different types of provider-patient relationships. There is a need to look at what ‘trust in healthcare’ means in today’s context. Do patients still have (a possibly naïve) complete faith that providers will give them correct treatment that is in their best interest? in this essay, i will explore the notion that advances in medical technology and their diffusion through corporatisation of healthcare have affected the character of people’s trust in healthcare providers and the system. Patients may have a modified trust in their physicians. i describe four types of trust in addition to what some have described as “blind trust”: patients may weigh their options: they may verify the doctor’s decisions; they may remain sceptical of the doctor, and they may place their trust in protocol-based treatment.engWith permission of the license/copyright holderMedicine,Health,EthicsBioethicsSocial ethicsSexual orientation/genderMedical ethicsHealth ethicsArticle