Trust in medical decision-making concerning older people: the views of key professionals in the Dutch health care practice.

This article deals with the issue of public trust in decisions made by individual physicians, concerning older people, as perceived by various key professionals. While trust is a basic element in our health care service, it is at the same time a difficult phenomenon to conceptualize. This article tries to contribute to a better understanding of what trust in medical practice entails and what are the necessary conditions for a society to put trust in the medical profession.