title: 2-COM: an instrument to facilitate patient-professional communication in routine clinical practice.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  A simple patient-completed self-report instrument may facilitate patient-professional carer communication.
  
  
  METHODS
  A 19-item self-report needs schedule was used in a sample of 243 out-patients with non-affective psychosis. Patients and professional carers commented on the usefulness of the instrument. In a subgroup of 95 patient-carer dyads, the professional carer was asked to rate the needs in addition to the patient.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients scored their needs reliably and lower than the professionals (OR = 0.9, 95% CI: 0.9, 0.97). Concordance between patients and professional carers on individual needs was very low. More than 50% of the professional carers and more than 80% of the patients found 2-COM useful. The higher the number of needs indicated by the patient, the greater the discrepancy between patients and professional carers with regard to the usefulness of the schedule.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  2-COM is a useful instrument to expose, and subsequently bridge, patient-professional carer discordance on patient needs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, European Graduate School of Neuroscience, Maastricht University, The Netherlands. j.vanos@sp.unimaas.nl
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: van Os
authors.forename: A C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Altamura
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bobes
authors.forename: D C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Owens
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gerlach
authors.forename: J S E
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Hellewell
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kasper
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Naber
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Tarrier
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Robert
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003142:Communication; D005060:Europe; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020380:Needs Assessment; D010358:Patient Participation; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires