This textbook integrates clinical wisdom with empirical findings, drawing upon the history of communication science, providing a comprehensive curriculum for applied communication skills training for specialist oncologists, surgeons, nurses, psychosocial care providers and other members of the multidisciplinary team. This new edition presents a curriculum for nurses, which discusses needs of pre-registration to advanced trainees, including the ‘SAGE & THYME’ training programme, chronic disease, responding to depressed patients, the last hours and days of life, family care, facilitation training, and e-learning. The core curriculum ranges from breaking bad news, discussing risk and prognosis, achieving shared treatment decisions, responding to difficult emotions, dealing with denial, communicating with relatives and conducting a family meeting, helping patients cope with survivorship, deal with recurrence, transition to palliative care, and talk openly about death and dying. Modules offer guidelines about key skills, essential tasks, effective strategies, and scenarios for training sessions with simulated patients. The communication science section covers the history and models of communication skills training, the art of facilitating skill development, ethics, gender, power, the internet, audio-recording significant consultations, decision aides, and shared treatment decisions, medical student training, and enhancing patient participation in consultations. Specialty issues are explored, including enrolling in clinical trials, working in teams, discussing genetic risk, reconstructive and salvage surgery, among many other important issues. Variations in clinical disciplines are also discussed, including chapters for social workers, radiologists, surgical oncologists, medical and radiation oncologists, palliative medicine, pastoral care, pharmacy, paediatrics, and the elderly.
Development and evaluation of a CBT-based communication skills training for perinatal loss care providers
