“Nobody Will Tell You. You’ve Got to Ask!”: An Examination of Patient-Provider Communication Needs and Preferences among Black and White Women with Early-Stage Breast Cancer

Patient–provider discussion about emotional and social needs, mental health outcomes, and benefit finding among U.S. Adults living with cancer

“…Our findings represent a significant contribution to the literature because they address an important component of cancer care that involves attending to patients’ emotional and social needs, both of which are critical to achieving improved health outcomes 5,6,42,43 . There has been increased attention to patient–provider discussions about patients’ psychosocial needs, specifically as it is related to improved mental health outcomes 28,42,44 . Prior evidence has made it apparent that diagnosis of cancer can have a substantial emotional impact on patients 1–4 .…”

“…Despite an increase in cancer patients with contemporary depression symptoms, 3,4 many cancer patients (20%–40%) with depression or distress were not referred to psychosocial health services 60,61 ; even referred, approximately 20% of the patients never received psycho‐oncology counseling 61 . Establishing the evidence of patient–provider communication could help steer efforts to improve the psychosocial aspect of patient–provider relations and adequate provision of psychosocial services 27–29 . More research is needed to understand why cancer survivors with multiple chronic conditions are disproportionately affected by depression and what interventions may be helpful for addressing depression in this population.…”

“…Understanding a patient's psychosocial context, such as their emotional or non‐medical needs, is a critical component of high‐quality, patient–provider communication 27–29 . To date, however, there are limited studies that quantitatively examine what elements of patient–provider communication lead to improved health outcomes, especially mental health outcomes (e.g., distress and resilience).…”

“…To address this gap, we examine whether having a patient–provider discussion about patients’ emotional and social needs is associated with measures of psychological well‐being among cancer patients. Given the relationship between psychosocial care and benefit finding (e.g., adaptive coping, optimism, resilience), 17,27–29 we also assess the association of having such communication with patients’ attitudes toward living with cancer as a secondary outcome. Evidence of effective communication could help guide efforts to improve patient–provider relationships, development of coping strategies, and quality of life during the course of cancer treatment.…”

Person‐centered communication about weight and weight management: Focus group discussions in a diverse sample of women with nonmetastatic breast cancer and obesity

“…A specific aim was to discern potential differences in the patient-provider communication experiences of Black and White patients in light of research documenting communication deficits in prior studies. [32][33][34]…”