[Physician-patient communication in nephrology]

Training the nephrologist-to-be to physician-patient communication (PPC) has several objectives: to guide his/her history taking in order to make a diagnosis, of course, but also to help him/her establish a long-lasting relationship, inform and motivate the patient, and prepare him/her to break bad news and to deal with end-of-life issues. PPC rests on specific strategies and on the ethical grounds of a human encounter, the success of which expresses itself in care. An effective PPC offers many benefits to the patient, but also to the clinician. Talking about renal failure and dialysis, about kidney transplantation, and about withdrawing or not starting therapy: these are a few of the communicational challenges awaiting the nephrologist in training, mostly with patients requiring long-term follow-up. PPC also requires specific skills in the field of pediatric nephrology, where one deals alternately with children, adolescents and parents. Whatever the personal abilities of the nephrologist-to-be, PPC is a competency that can be learned and improved, for the benefit of the patient, and also of the physician.