Bibliometric and visualization analysis of risk management in the doctor–patient relationship: A systematic quantitative literature review

Abstract

Objectives: This paper analyzed the research on risk management in the doctor–patient relationship (DPR) based on a systematic quantitative literature review approach using bibliometric software. It aims to uncover potential information about current research and predict future research hotspots and trends. Methods: We conducted a comprehensive search for relevant publications in the Scopus database and the Web of Science Core Collection database from January 1, 2000 to December 31, 2023. We analyzed the data using CiteSpace 6.2.R2 and VOSviewer 1.6.19 software to examine the annual number of publications, countries/regions, journals, citations, authors, and keywords in the field. Results: A total of 553 articles and reviews that met the criteria were included in this study. There is an overall upward trend in the number of publications issued; in terms of countries/regions, the United States and the United Kingdom are the largest contributors; Patient Education and Counseling is the most productive journal (17); Physician communication and patient adherence to treatment: a meta-analysis is the most cited article (1637); the field has not yet to form a stable and obvious core team; the analysis of high-frequency keywords revealed four main research directions: the causes of DPR risks, coping strategies, measurement tools, and research related to people prone to doctor–patient risk characteristics; the causes of DPR risks, coping strategies, measurement tools, and research related to people prone to doctor–patient risk characteristics; the keyword burst analysis revealed several shifts in the research hotspots for risk management in the DPR, suggesting that chronic disease management, is a future research direction for the continued development of risk management in the DPR. Conclusions: The visualization analysis of risk management literature in the DPR using CiteSpace and VOSviewer software provides insights into the current research status and highlights future research directions.