Physicians have worked to earn the trust of their patients for nearly 2,400 years, dating back to the days of Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine.

Lucky for Hippocrates that his patients didn’t have internet access.

A new study from researchers at the University of Florida suggests that distrust of the health care system, including government health agencies, is seeping into the doctor-patient relationship and threatening the delivery of care.

The study noted that people with low trust in the health care system are more than six times more likely to say their interaction with a doctor worsened after they brought information from the internet to their medical visit — regardless of how they identified politically.

When patients turn to information on social media or online forums, bring it to their doctor visit and then have that information debunked, study authors say the relationship — and trust — suffer.

Notably, the results signal a shift physicians cannot ignore. Even if the information a patient finds is inaccurate — and the study did not attempt to judge the accuracy of that material — doctors must now navigate those conversations in ways that preserve their relationship with the patient.

Authors say that doesn’t mean patients shouldn’t be engaged in their health and seek information online. But doctors must navigate those conversations in ways that preserve their relationship with the patient, emphasizing empathy and respectful listening.

At the end of the day, a patient’s health only benefits when both physician and patient work together toward a common goal.