Perceptions of nurses with regard to doctor-patient communication

The objective of this study was to evaluate nurses' perceptions of communication between doctors and patients with cancer, AIDS and rheumatoid arthritis. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 741 nurses in 12 hospitals. Nurses received a self-questionnaire that included questions on personal value and attitudes. The answers were used in constructing affective variables (religious beliefs, attitude towards death, paternalism). The prevalence of explicit communication in 'nurse perception of doctor-patient communication' in the case of cancer was 4.5%, with AIDS 30%, and with rheumatoid arthritis 41.8%. When the value of communication was evaluated, it became evident that the likelihood of a nurse perceiving explicit communication in reference to a diagnosis of cancer was 6.5 time greater when communication was considered to be of greater value (CI 95% 2.6-6.6). For nurses who accept the possibility of death, the likelihood of perceiving explicit communication in the case of AIDs was 7.4 times greater than for nurses who deny this possibility (CI 95% 3.7-14.7), and when nurses displayed a deeply religious attitude, the likelihood of perceiving explicit communication was 80% greater than for nurses without this attitude (CI 95% 1.1-2.9). Nurses participate actively in the process of attending to patients with cancer and other disabling illnesses. Thus, there is a need for health professionals who provide compassionate attention, which will improve the various interrelationships between nurses and patients.