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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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It's all in the details
— physician variability in disclosing a dementia diagnosis | | Author(s) | Emily C Kissel, Brian D Carpenter |
| Journal title | Aging & Mental Health, vol 11, no 3, May 2007 |
| Pages | pp 273-280 |
| Source | http://www.tandfonline.com |
| Keywords | Dementia ; Diagnosis ; Attitude ; General practitioners ; Communication ; The Family ; Patients ; Qualitative Studies ; United States of America. |
| Annotation | Qualitative analysis was used to examine group and individual variables regarding the philosophy about and pragmatics of disclosure of dementia in a sample of 10 physicians working at an Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (ADRC). While all clinicians believed they should disclose a dementia diagnosis, there was wide variability in what "disclosure" meant to them. Even individual physicians said their disclosure strategy differs from patient to patient, depending on the specifics of each case. Variability was seen in attitudes about when and to whom they disclose a dementia diagnosis, who should deliver the news, what language is used, and what topics are covered. Each physician seemed to apply an idiosyncratic and complex algorithm to make decisions about these process features of the conversation. They weigh shifting perceptions of the utility of disclosure in conjunction with a desire to facilitate care planning, an awareness of family dynamics, a responsibility to acknowledge preferences, and an obligation to communicate clear information, all within the time constraints of a medical consultation. Further empirical research is needed to establish best practices that promote psychological adjustment and successful disease management to patients and caregivers who receive a dementia diagnosis. (RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-070614213 A |
| Classmark | EA: LK7: DP: QT6: U: SJ: LF: 3DP: 7T |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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