Table 4 Definitions of relationships and trust

Watkins et al. [110]

Relationships have been described within the context of Relationships-Fit-Visibility Framework i.e., “relationships with health workers and peers as a means of providing support for behavioural change, feedback, and reinforcement”. More generally, they define patient-provider relationships as the patient engaging with the provider.

Crooks et al. [121]

Relationships have been defined in relation to continuity of care which is defined as including three interrelated dimensions (informational, longitudinal/geographical, relational/interpersonal or the development of a trusting relationship between patient and doctor over time).

Clarke et al. [125]

“Relationship-based" care and "therapeutic alliance" are included in the authors' definition of patient-centered care as described below:

“The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) defines PCC as the relationship-based primary care that meets the individual patient and family’s needs, preferences, and priorities. PCC integrates the disease and illness experience while acknowledging the whole person to create a sharing of power, responsibility, and therapeutic alliance.”

Qudah et al. [83]

The authors use Beach et al.’s four aspects of relationship-centred care and reconstruct descriptors of each aspect specific to mHealth:

1.Relationships in healthcare ought to include dimensions of personhood as well as roles

2.Emotion and empathy are important components of relationships in healthcare

3.All healthcare relationships occur in the context of reciprocal influence

4.Relationship-centred care has a moral foundation

Rathert et al. [91]

Fostering healing relationships is defined as “characterized by trust and rapport. Everyone should understand each other’s roles. Providers should take the lead in addressing issues that might prevent patients and families form being actively involved. A trusting relationship can depend on and facilitate communication”.

Luo et al. [85]

The term “physician–patient relationship” is used and described as “second only to that of family”. The “traditional physician–patient relationship” is described as one where “physicians made decisions and patients obeyed them”, which is now transitioning to one of “mutual participation, shared power and responsibility”. Quality of communication is seen as affecting the physician–patient relationship.

Adjekum et al. [59]

"Trust is oftentimes illustrated as a relationship between one party (a trustor) and another (a trustee) with optimistic anticipation that the trustee will fulfill the trustor’s expectations."

"Whether or not it is appropriate to talk about trust between people and inanimate objects—such as technological products—remains an open question in the literature."

'Trust enablers' refer to those factors that encourage stakeholders' trust in digital health 'Trust impediments' denote the factors that can potentially hinder trust