Handling unexpected distress on the telephone: the development of interdisciplinary training

St Nicholas's Hospice recognized that its non-clinical staff needed support and guidance regarding the management of particularly difficult telephone conversations. It is understandable that patients and family members who are experiencing extreme uncertainty, fear and worry might express anger and despair, however, non-clinical staff were troubled by having to handle such raw emotions on the telephone. Despite palliative care excelling at counselling skills and training in breaking bad news, no material or courses exist to help these staff handle unanticipated distress on the telephone. A training session was established and, unexpectedly, many clinical staff enrolled. Although a formal in-depth evaluation did not take place, participant feedback suggested it was equally beneficial to non-clinical and clinical staff. A key element of the apparent success was the interprofessional, interagency, interpersonal sharing and exchange of ideas.