gms | German Medical Science

The demand for more information and participation within diagnostic and therapeutic procedures by oncologic patients (shared decision making) did substantially increase. Based on the development of the www. as a major source of patients information there is still an intensive discussion about the importance, quantity and quality of individual personal counselling by professionals. Some studies have shown that the increase in information does not necessarily entail an increase in knowledge and an improvement of decision making. However there are still reservations in parts of the professionals about the amount of participation in decision making by patients. We did evaluate a program for comprehensive counselling of cancer patients ("second opinion") at the Tumor Biology Center Freiburg. One aspect of the data evaluation (n = 566 pts.) revealed a major deficit in communication by physicians as judged by the pts. The methodological approach was based on the one hand on patients self-ratings by questionnaires. Patients were interviewed by a questionnaire at three points of measurement: at admission (T1), after the consultation (T1') and 4 months later (T2). Information needs and expectations, psychosocial status, satisfaction with the former and current consultation, treatment status including the use of complementary medicine and quality of life by a standardized questionnaire (EORTC QLQ C30) were assessed. In addition we did a survey for satisfaction with communication and counselling in more than 2000 cancer pts. We also asked more than 500 physicians treating cancer pts. about their assessment of pts. satisfaction with their repective communication skills by a short questionnaire. The results of these evaluations will be presented and discussed.