Empathic Communication Skills Training to Reduce Lung Cancer Stigma

Summary

Research indicates that perceived stigma within medical encounters is prevalent and problematic for lung cancer patients' well-being and quality of cancer care. Promoting empathic communication appears to be a potentially effective intervention target to help reduce patients' perceptions of stigma within clinical encounters; however, no formal trainings exist that focus on teaching empathic communication to oncology care providers (OCPs). Building upon favorable findings from a prior R21 (R21CA202793) and the importance of developing interventions to address lung cancer stigma, our goal is to conduct a national trial of empathic communication skills (ECS) training to facilitate improvements in the medical and psychosocial care of patients through de-stigmatizing interactions with OCPs for patients diagnosed with lung cancer.

Detailed description

The aims of this study are: 1. to evaluate the effect of the ECS training on OCP primary outcomes (communication and empathic skill uptake) and secondary outcomes (ECS training appraisal - relevance, novelty, clarity; self-efficacy, empathy, compassion burn-out); 2. to evaluate the effect of the ECS training vs. WLC on patients' reported primary outcomes (lung cancer stigma), and secondary outcomes (perceived clinician empathy, satisfaction with communication, psychological distress, patients' experience of clinical encounter, and overall patient satisfaction). Additionally, acceptance of referral to tobacco cessation (for those currently smoking) will be explored; and 3. to examine potential moderators of OCP (e.g., demographic characteristics, professional role characteristics) and patient outcomes (e.g., demographic characteristics, illness characteristics). Our central hypothesis is that the ECS training will demonstrate significant short-term improvements in clinicians' uptake of empathic skills and self-efficacy and will be superior to WLC with regards to patient reported measures of stigma, clinician empathy, satisfaction, and overall experience.

Arms & interventions

• BehavioralEmpathic Communication Skills (ECS) training

  The overall training goal of this 2.25 hour module ECS module is to enhance OCP recognition and responsiveness to lung cancer patients' empathic opportunities by communicating understanding, alleviating stigma and distress, and providing support. The ECS training also provides tools to OCPs to buffer/inoculate patients against stigmatizing attitudes and behaviors by others such that lung cancer patients who currently or formerly smoked can be given "small doses" of an opposing viewpoint (termed as "preparing patients for recurring smoking questions") and suggestions of "counterarguments" in order to make them resistant to future stigmatizing attacks by others

• OtherStandard of Care participant interaction

  Standard of Care participant interaction

Outcome measures

Eligibility criteria