To analyze the impacts of bureaucracy management at tertiary public hospitals in Beijing on exchange modes and trust between doctors and patients, using both the bureaucracy theory and trust theory. To study the role of such management as an organizational structure for hospital operation and service, in the transition of doctor-patient trust from traditional special trust to a universal trust based on bureaucracy structure and specialized job division.

The purpose sampling method was used to select 94 hospital administrators, medical staff, and patients from six tertiary hospitals for a field survey.

Bureaucracy at public tertiary hospitals keeps improving, and its systematic and refined organizational structure is changing the exchanges between doctors and patients, earmarking universal trust of the fundamental type of doctor-patient trust, aided by special trust. Rules and regulations of bureaucracy normalize medical services, and specialization enables medical workers in their clinical work against difficult and severe diseases, winning both reputation and patient trust as well. However, the specialized, professional and dehumanized characteristic of bureaucracy tend to encourage doctors to attend to diseases than patients, and separate links in medical services to decrease doctor-patient trust in the meantime.

Bureaucracy is a necessary organizational form of urban public hospitals, but it should strengthen their humanity feature and improve their communication with patients with rules and regulations. At the same time, with the use of integrated medical mode in clinical practice, bureaucracy could be improved to benefit patients and enhance trust of patients.

Hospitals, public; Bureaucracy; Doctor-patient trust; Type of doctor-patient trust; Qualitative study