Oncologist-patient-caregiver decision-making discussions in the context of advanced cancer in an Asian setting.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Patient involvement in treatment decisions is recommended in clinician-patient encounters. Little is known about how oncologists engage patients in shared decision making in non-Western countries. We assessed the prevalence of shared decision making among Singaporean oncologists and analysed how they discussed prognosis.

Methods

We audio-recorded 100 consultations between advanced cancer patients and their oncologists. We developed a coding system to assess oncologist encouragement of patient participation in decision making and disclosure of an explicit prognosis. We assessed patient and oncologist characteristics that predicted these behaviours.

Results

Forty-one consultations involved treatment discussions. Oncologists almost always listed more than one t

SUBMITTER: Malhotra C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6978867 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature