Oncology nursing forum
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Oncology nursing forum · Jul 2001
ReviewCommunication skills: breaking bad news in the clinical setting.
Oncology nurses need to develop expert communication skills, especially when delivering bad news to patients and families. Patients and families differ in their needs for levels of information, interpretation of information delivered to them, and responses to unfavorable news. ⋯ Also, skill in responding to feelings and not the content of expression is necessary to the process of recovery. So many improved cancer treatments exist, but the goal of effectively communicating bad news with respect and caring is just as important as treating the person who happens to have cancer.