HOW TO BREAK BAD NEWS

For many health care professionals and social service providers the hardest part of the job is breaking bad news The news may be about a condition that is lifethreatening such as cancer or AIDS disabling such as multiple sclerosis or rheumatoid arthritis or embarrassing such as genital herpes To date medical education has done little to train practitioners in coping with such situations With this guide Robert Buckman and Yvonne Kason provide help Using plain intelligible language they outline the basic principles of breaking bad new and present a technique or protocol that can be easily learned It draws on listening and interviewing skills that consider such factors as how much the patient knows andor wants to know how to identify the patient39s agenda and understanding and how to respond to his or her feelings about the information They also discuss reactions of family and friends and of other members of the health care team Based on Buckman39s awardwinning training videos and Kason39s courses on interviewing skills for medical students this volume is an indispensable aid for doctors nurses psychotherapists social workers and all those in related fields