Communicating Uncertainty: a Narrative Review and Framework for Future Research.

Area of Science:

• Medical Communication
• Shared Decision-Making
• Healthcare Ethics

Background:

• Clinical uncertainty is crucial for shared decision-making but rarely communicated to patients.
• Healthcare culture often perceives uncertainty as failure, hindering open discussion.
• Personalized healthcare and genomics necessitate better communication of predictive limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review evidence on communicating clinical uncertainty to patients.
• To identify current strategies, challenges, and barriers in uncertainty communication.
• To propose a framework for future research on this topic.

Main Methods:

• Narrative review of studies on clinical uncertainty communication.
• Analysis of existing evidence regarding approaches to managing uncertainty.
• Identification of gaps in current research and practice.

Main Results:

• Clinicians infrequently disclose clinical uncertainty to patients.
• Cultural factors within healthcare impede open communication about uncertainty.
• Effective strategies for communicating uncertainty are not widely implemented.

Conclusions:

• Enhanced communication of clinical uncertainty can improve shared decision-making.
• Addressing cultural barriers is vital for fostering trust and transparency.
• Further research is needed to develop and evaluate effective communication frameworks.