Physicians and Patients View of Breaking Bad News about Cancer in Ethiopia: Facility-Based Quantitative Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Abstract Background: Breaking   Bad News (BBN) is an integral part of oncology services but hardly addresses issues in Ethiopia. Objective: The current study was intended to explore the perspectives of the physicians and patients about BBN concerning cancer diagnosis in Ethiopia. Methods: This is a facility-based quantitative cross-sectional study. An anonymous survey was performed on 50 clinicians and 50 cancer patients by using a structured questionnaire in Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital (TASH) from October 2022 to Dec 2022. Physicians at TASH during the study period were included in this study. Descriptive data was generated and analyzed by using SPSS. Results: Forty-eight (96 %) of physicians and forty-seven (94%) patients responded to the questionnaires. The majority of the patients were presented at advanced stages (Stage III and IV) of the cancer. More than half (24 ;51.1%) of the patients were not aware of their illness at the time of data collection More than half (28; 58%) of clinicians were not properly practicing BBN to the cancer patients. A significant number of (19: 40.4%) patients were not satisfied with the way BBN was delivered. Junior physicians showed a higher tendency to practice BBN than their seniors even though a majority (27:56%) of clinicians delivered BBN to the family not to the patient The majority (30:62.5%) of the clinicians reported that they did not get any course on BBN. Conclusion: The physicians have limited knowledge while the patients have limited awareness about the importance of BBN regarding cancer. Most of the clinicians lack the essential skills of BBN. Due to the impact of religious and sociocultural backgrounds, physicians prefer communicating bad news to the relatives of the patients rather than the patients themselves. Practicing physicians at all levels should be trained in the skills required for breaking bad news. [Ethiop. J. Health Dev. 2025; 39(1)] Keywords: Breaking bad news, Bad news, oncology service, cancer patients, Ethiopia