Breaking Bad News: A Review of Strategies and their Appropriateness in the Rural Indian Setting

Abstract

A physician at some point in his career is bound to find himself as the harbinger of bad news. Depending on the specialty, some may find themselves delivering bad news more frequently than others. While that bad news can lie on a very narrow spectrum from the physician’s point of view, the spectrum changes significantly when viewed from the eyes of the patient. Bad news is defined as any information which adversely and seriously affects an individual’s view of his or her future.[1] While the most common perception of bad news is a terminal illness, it can be any life-altering diagnoses ranging from fetal demise to degenerative conditions to debilitating infections. A physician must equip himself with the skills to deliver this news in a way that there is a lack of neither information provided nor empathy offered.

Keywords

• spikes model
• breaks protocol