This comprehensive text provides clinicians with practical and evidence-based guidelines to achieve effective, patient-centered communication in the areas of cancer and palliative care. Written by an outstanding panel of international experts, it integrates empirical findings with clinical wisdom, draws on historical approaches and presents a state-of-the-art curriculum for applied communication skills training for the specialist oncologist, surgeon, nurse and other multi-disciplinary team members involved in cancer care today. In this book communication is broken down into key modules that cover the life-cycle of cancer care. They include coverage of diagnosis and treatment including clinical trials, empathic support in response to distress, transition to survivorship or palliative therapies, discussion of prognosis, conduct of family meetings, and care of the dying. Complementary training of patients in their communication with the doctor completes the interactive dyad. The art of teaching, impact of gender and power in the consultation and the ethical context are carefully considered. Special communication challenges include discussion of genetic risk, rehabilitative and salvage surgery, promotion of treatment adherence, unanticipated adverse outcomes, intercultural issues, fertility and sexuality. The value of decision aides, question prompt lists, audio-recording of consultations and use of the internet is illustrated. By looking across the full spectrum of disciplines involved in the multidisciplinary team, discipline-specific issues are considered by experts in each field. In this manner, the needs of patients and their relatives are evaluated, including paediatric and geriatric populations. To achieve all of this, theoretical models are examined from the medical school to the highly specialized practice, facilitation training and actor training are made explicit, and international approaches to communication skills training are compared and contrasted. Finally, research tools that assist in coding cancer consultations, evaluating training courses, and employing mixed methods in studies aid the reader in providing clear and sensitive communication when handling challenging situations whilst treating cancer sufferers and palliative care patients.

Revised throughout with an additional emphasis on nursing care, this handbook is a concise and authoritative guide to modern palliative care. An ideal resource for the busy professional management of patients with end of life care needs.

Communication is a core skill for medical professionals when treating patients. Cancer and palliative care present some of the most challenging clinical situations. This book provides evidence-based guidelines alongside case examples, tips, and strategies to achieve effective, patient-centred communication.

'The Textbook of Palliative Care Communication' is the authoritative text on communication in palliative care. Uniquely developed by an interdisciplinary editorial team to address an array of providers including physicians, nurses, social workers, and chaplains, it unites clinicians and academic researchers interested in the study of communication.

Handbook of Pain and Palliative Care:Biobehavioral Approaches for the Life Course Rhonda J. Moore, editor This book takes both a biobehavioral and a lifespan approach to understanding long-term and chronic pain, and intervening to optimize patients’ functioning. Rich in clinical diversity, chapters explore emerging areas of interest (computer-based interventions, fibromyalgia, stress), ongoing concerns (cancer pain, low back pain), and special populations (pediatric, elderly, military). This coverage provides readers with a knowledge base in assessment, treatment, and management that is up to date, practice strengthening, and forward looking. Subject areas featured in the Handbook include: ▪ Patient-practitioner communication ▪ Assessment tools and strategies ▪ Common pain conditions across the lifespan ▪ Biobehavioral mechanisms of chronic pain ▪ Pharmaceutical, neurological, and rehabilitative interventions ▪ Psychosocial, complementary/alternative, narrative, and spiritual approaches ▪ Ethical issue and future directions With the rise of integrative perspective and the emphasis on overall quality of life rather than discrete symptoms, pain management is gaining importance across medical disciplines. Handbook of Pain and Palliative Care stands out as a one-stop reference for a range of professionals, including health practitioners specializing in pain management or palliative care, clinical and health psychologists, public health professionals, and clinicians and administrators in long-term care and hospice.

Physicians who care for patients with life-threatening illnesses face daunting communication challenges. Patients and family members can react to difficult news with sadness, distress, anger, or denial. This book defines the specific communication tasks involved in talking with patients with life-threatening illnesses and their families. Topics include delivering bad news, transition to palliative care, discussing goals of advance-care planning and do-not-resuscitate orders, existential and spiritual issues, family conferences, medical futility, and other conflicts at the end of life. Drs Anthony Back, Robert Arnold, and James Tulsky bring together empirical research as well as their own experience to provide a roadmap through difficult conversations about life-threatening issues. The book offers both a theoretical framework and practical conversational tools that the practising physician and clinician can use to improve communication skills, increase satisfaction, and protect themselves from burnout.

Now in paperback, the Oxford Textbook of Communication in Oncology and Palliative Care integrates clinical wisdom with empirical findings. Written by an international team of authors, it draws upon the history of communication science, providing the reader with a comprehensive curriculum for applied communication skills training. An essential resource, the Oxford Textbook of Communication in Oncology and Palliative Care is filled with tips and strategies for effective communication in difficult and challenging scenarios. In focusing on cancer and the end-of-life, it deals with the existential and spiritual challenges found across all of medicine, providing deep insights into what is at stake and how clinicians might optimally respond. This authoritative and wide-ranging book provides clinicians with state-of-the-art and evidence-based guidelines to achieve effective, patient-centred communication in the clinical settings of oncology and palliative care. This edition includes sections on the curriculum for nurses, the core curriculum, and an introductory section on communication science. The chapters embrace specialty issues across the clinical disciplines, from enrolling in clinical trials, working in teams, and discussing genetic risk, to talking about sexuality, infertility, and intercultural issues. An educational perspective is also provided, with chapters covering communication skills training, how to evaluate courses, and international models of training.