Communicating bad news: attitudes and modes of communication of the health professions.
Elsa Vitale, Roberto Lupo, Daniela Marra, Antonietta D'Abate, Maicol Carvello, Antonino Calabro, Mario Cucurachi, Luana Conte, Stefano Botti, Ornella De Mitri, Maria Chiara Carriero
Author Information
Elsa Vitale: Mental Health Center Modugno, Local Healthcare Company Bari, Italy.
Roberto Lupo: San Giuseppe da Copertino Hospital, Local Health Authority Lecce, Italy.
Daniela Marra: Freelance Nurse.
Antonietta D'Abate: Azienda Sanitaria Regionale del Molise.
Maicol Carvello: Brisighella Community Hospital, Local Health Authority of Romagna, Italy.
Antonino Calabro: New Hospital of the Infirm, Local Health Authority Biella, Italy.
Mario Cucurachi: Physician Anesthesiologist, Lecce general Hospital, Italy.
Luana Conte: Laboratory of Biomedical Physics and Environment, Department of Mathematics and Physics "E. De Giorgi", University of Salento, Lecce, Italy.
Stefano Botti: Company USL-IRCCS Reggio Emilia, Italy.
Ornella De Mitri: Physician Lecce general Hospital, Italy.
Maria Chiara Carriero: Istituto Santa Chiara, Rome, Italy.
SUMMARY: TBackground. Information regarding ominous prognoses, which may cause concern and distress, should be provided carefully and cautiously, using non-traumatizing terminology, accommodating the patient's fears, and not excluding elements of hope. Goal. To analyze the difficulties of health care providers in the process of communicating bad news. Materials and Methods. An observational, cross-sectional, multicenter study was conducted from March to August 2021 among Italian Physicians and Nurses. Results. The results of the study indicate a greater participation of Nurse practitioners than Physicians, a fact that may indicate how necessary it is, to overcome the belief that the communication of bad news is of exclusive medical relevance. Among the participants in the study, about half, equal to 46.7% stated that they had no specific training, while the remainder claimed to have attended master's or higher education courses in 8.5% of cases, 23% attended conferences, while 21.8% acquired their skills through work experience. Conclusions. The communication of bad news, needs to be recognized in the same way as those procedures that characterize care itself, and for which the highest possible quality is sought.
