Journal of general internal medicine
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To determine the incidence and nature of interpersonal conflicts that arise when patients in the intensive care unit are considered for limitation of life-sustaining treatment. ⋯ Conflict is more prevalent in the setting of intensive care decision making than has previously been demonstrated. While conflict over the treatment decision itself is most common, conflict over other issues, including social issues, is also significant. By identifying conflict and by recognizing that the treatment decision may not be the only conflict present, or even the main one, clinicians may address conflict more constructively.
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To explore the rate and predictors of Papanicolaou (Pap) smear use among American Samoans, we conducted a survey of 986 randomly selected adult, self-identified Samoan women in American Samoa (n = 323), Hawaii (n = 325), and Los Angeles (n = 338). Only 46% of the women reported having a Pap smears within the past 3 years. ⋯ Knowledge and attitudes about cervical cancer did not predict Pap smear screening. It is likely that the low rate of Pap smear screening contributes to the high site-specific incidence of cervical cancer among American Samoan women.
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Editorial Comment
Heart out of darkness: learning from end-of-life care.
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To ascertain the views of physicians and physician leaders toward the legalization of physician-assisted suicide. ⋯ Members of the AMA House of Delegates strongly oppose physician-assisted suicide, but rank-and-file physicians show no consensus either for or against its legalization. Although the debate is sometimes adversarial, most physicians in the United States are uncertain or endorse moderate views on assisted suicide.
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Oral presentation skills are central to physician-physician communication; however, little is known about how these skills are learned. Rhetoric is a social science which studies communication in terms of context and explores the action of language on knowledge, attitudes, and values. It has not previously been applied to medical discourse. We used rhetorical principles to qualitatively study how students learn oral presentation skills and what professional values are communicated in this process. ⋯ Students learn oral presentation by trial and error rather than through teaching of an explicit rhetorical model. This may delay development of effective communication skills and result in acquisition of unintended professional values. Teaching and learning of oral presentation skills may be improved by emphasizing that context determines content and by making explicit the tacit rules of presentation.