Nurses' Perceptions of Prognosis-Related Communication

Effective communication is an important aspect in providing health care. Communications optimize the patient-caregiver relationship and improve patient care and family and caregiver welfare. The main objective of this study was to explore nurses' experience of prognosis-related communication (PRC).

Phenomenological research design was used to do this study. A total of 248 members of the local oncology nursing association were invited to complete this online survey from January 2016 to March 2016. Then, focus groups were held to discuss and improve themes derived from the analysis of online written responses. Five focus groups were performed, each consisting of 6 to 8 participants. No new data were generated by the fifth focus group and data saturation was achieved. NVivo 11 was used to manage data and facilitate the development of themes.

The participants were almost female, with a mean nursing experience of 13 years and almost 8 years of working experience in oncology ward. Three themes were extracted following data analysis, namely the importance of collaboration, impact of PRC, and communication of prognostic information. One hundred and fifty nurses (60%) reported that they received no formal training or education about PRC.

There is a need to improve the knowledge and attitude of physician toward engaging nurses in the process of PRC.